I Didn't Ask For This
by Secret Moon Princess
Summary: Wynter is an average girl. Who doesn't know a thing about Lord of the Rings. Well what happens when one second she's talking with her brother and his best friend, and the next she ends up in a river, drowning, and mute? *10th walker* Eomer/OFC/Legolas
1. A Meteor Shower

**Disclaimer: Anything that's familiar, doesn't belong to me. Except for Edmund. Edmund is my Edmund and not the one from Narnia. Although, if my Ed was that Ed, I would be a very happy girl.**

I sat on my window sill rubbing furiously at my face, trying in vain to make the tears stop. The window was open and the night was cold, but I didn't notice. I barely noticed anything anymore. There was a light knocking at my door. Trying my hardest to calm down I asked, "Who's there?"

"It's me, Wynter." **  
**

"What is it Ed?"

Edmund, or Ed as I like to call him, is my older brother by 3 years. Or at least he was my older brother.

"Haru and I were wondering if you wanted to still go see the meteor shower tonight."

I turned towards the door, "Should I go?" I thought. Considering the fact that I've been moping around since sunset, and the moon is currently high in the sky, I should probably go out.

"Yeah, I'm still going. Let me get changed first though."

"Alright. We'll meet you down stairs."

I got up from my seat by the window and closed it silently. Hiccuping a little bit, with my eyes burning, I went over to my closet and took out a pair of black skinny jeans. I stripped myself of my shorts and put on the pants, leaving my black tank top on. Pulling on a dark brown jacket, I grabbed my mocha backpack with these pretty aqua designs. I remember Ed got mad at me when I bought it because I didn't even bother to see if it would come in handy. Laughing, I replied, "It'll carry stuff, what else would it do?"

I remember his exasperated sigh when he said, "I meant it being water-proof or having a hidden pocket or something."

I stashed my I-pod into it so I would have something to keep me busy while waiting for the meteor-shower to start. Looking around my room, I turned towards the door and started down the stairs. When I got to the bottom step, I saw that Haru was leaning on the wall by the stairs.

"Hey Kia."

Now you might be confused. My full name is Wynter Kia Rose. My brother is Edmund Jacob Rose. People usually call me Kia, except for Ed or when I get in trouble. Now that you've met Haru, I should explain how he came about, I guess. When my brother was in Kindergarten he had some trouble in class. He was bullied a lot because he was a bit heavier than the other kids and had a baby face. Haru helped him out and they became the best of friends, even now when they are just starting community college.

Haru is about 5"11 with shoulder length black hair. His mom was Japanese and his dad is American, so he inherited his skin tone and hair from his mom, but he got blue eyes form his dad. He is very lean, but is slightly muscular on his chest and legs. While he was in high school, he and my brother did track, so they both toned out during the long four years.

My brother is 5"10 with short, light-brown hair and brown eyes that look almost amber depending on the light. Remember how I said he was teased about his weight when he was younger? Well, when he reached the 5th grade he started slimming out. Now he is almost as lean as Haru, but he's more muscular. He takes after our dad more than our mom.

I'm only 5"6 with long brown hair. I have green eyes, but they always seem to be constantly changing color. One minute they're green, and then they turn blue, then to brown, and back again. I'm skinny, but I don't have twigs for legs. Also, I have really white skin. Every time I've tried to tan, I always end up burning. So, you can guess why I hate living in a desert.

"Are you guys ready to go," I asked as I looked toward Ed.

"I am if you are."

"Hell yeah!"

I looked at Haru, "Well then, let's get going."

We hurried out the door. Edmund got into the driver's seat while Haru took shotgun. I sat in the back. We were on the road for only a couple minutes, then Ed looked up into the rear-view mirror and asked, "What did you and mom talk about that made you so upset?"

I stared coldly out the window, looking at the desert scenery. It was only September, but the night was freezing.

"Alright, I see how it is. I won't push you to talk about it if you don't want to."

A little bit later Haru started a different conversation with my brother.

"So, you're still coming with me to the movie premiere for the second Hobbit movie, right?"

"You bet!"

"The night before, do you want to have a Lord of the Rings marathon?"

"Sure."

I looked at them, slightly confused, "What's Lord of the Rings?"

They stared at me as if I had grown three heads. I furrowed my eyebrows, "What?"

"You seriously don't know what Lord of the Rings is?"

"Not at all."

"Well," Edmund started, "It is an _epic _trilogy about a hobbit named Frodo. He and his fellow companions travel through a world called Middle Earth. The first movie is about the Fellowship and how it started. The second movie consists of three separate story lines, which they all inter-connect in a sense. It's also the darkest movie of the three-"

"But all of these movies are essentially dark," Haru interrupted.

"Yes," continued Ed, "The last movie pretty much consists of a somewhat happy ending. Except for maybe Frodo."

I nodded my head and asked, "So who is the best character?"

Haru had an evil glint in his eye, "The best character is obviously Aragorn! He becomes a king in the end and ends up with a totally fine elf. I wouldn't mind having _that_ life."

"No way," my brother started, "The best is obviously Gandalf, I mean, come on! Who else can play Magneto AND the Grey-slash-white wizard in one lifetime perfectly? "

"Sooo who is the worst character? Out of the good guys and the bad guys," I asked.

Haru glanced at my brother. Ed quickly met his gaze and they both said at the same time, "Legolas."

"Why?"

"Because," Haru started, "He's a pretty elf boy who doesn't know how to get dirty. Or even really speak. Sure he's cool with a bow and arrow and all, but really, he's like a sissy."

"Well, I'm sure he can't be that bad, right," I countered.

"Trust me he is."

Edmund turned left and slowly came to a stop by a clearing that had a cactus or two every now and then. I took my backpack and we walked a few yards from the car and laid down a blanket. Haru laid down on his back, staring up at the sky. Ed laid down on the other side of the blanket, so I sat in the space in the middle of the two, with my bag still on my back.

"So who is the worst in the bad guys," I asked again.

Both of the boys looked up in thought. We stayed in this silence for a couple more minutes until Haru said, "I'd say Saruman is the worst out of the bad guys. Betraying your own kind and friends, that's not right."

"Well, I personally think Grima Wormtounge is the worst. Going after Eowyn like that, waiting till she's vulnerable. A guy just shouldn't do that you know?"

As my brother finished his sentence he sat up and shared a look with Haru that I almost missed. I was about to ask them what that look was for, but then a flash caught my eyes. Staring up into the sky, I saw that the meteor shower was starting. I leaned back to look at the piles of rock burning and falling through Earth's atmosphere. Then I heard a whisper that seemed to be in my head.

"_Wish for your heart's desire, my child._"

I shrugged. 'I guess it's worth a shot,' I thought, replaying what happened with my parents earlier today. They told me I was adopted and I blew up. I was hurt and I was distraught.

'I wish that I could find out who my birth parents are.'

My stomach lurched and I felt like I was being yanked around or was thrown into a blender. I tried to scream, but it felt like my vocal chords were ripped out. Then, the next thing I realized was that it was cold, I was wet, my head was being forced under the frigid water, and my precious I-pod was probably now water damaged.

**AN: Alright, so I'm not going to lie, I already have chapter 2 finished, but the reason why I won't post it until later is so that I have more time to work further. I really hope that makes sense xD Anyway, I know I've been really... really... REALLY bad about my previous multi-chapter fics. I'm hoping that since most of this is already scripted out, I'll be able to work more proficiently. Also, before I get any hate about calling Legolas a sissy, I did it only because I can see my two characters complaining about it (although never admitting it's because of Elf Envy. They're positively GREEN with it). **

**If you guys like it, Review. If you think it needs work, Review. If you absolutely hate it and wish to never see it again, press the back button. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow... I was not expecting such a good response! Thank you so much to those who've reviewed and followed and even favorited! I smile at every review I get =) Also, I'm posting this early because I'm half way done with chapter 3.**

**DISCLAIMER: Anything you recognize is not mine. **

**Here's the second chapter!**

I felt two sets of hands pull me up out of the water and set me onto something solid. Or at least somewhat solid. 'It's probably a raft,' I thought.

"Are you okay," I heard a male voice ask me. His voice had an accent that sounded a tiny bit like Scottish, but it seemed to be mixed with another accent I didn't recognize. Slowly I nodded my head, still in shock over the fact I could've just died. On top of the raft were four… boys? One of them was a bit heavier in weight with slightly curly blonde hair. There was another boy sitting next to him with curly dark brown hair and startling blue eyes. Across from him sat a boy with curly light brown hair. On his face was a worried look that melted into a goofy grin. Then I looked up to the other boy who asked if I was okay. His hair was a bit longer than the others. It was blonde and curly and seemed to shine a little bit in the moonlight.

"Who are you," The blue-eyed boy asked.

I opened my mouth and started to say 'My name is Wynter' when I noticed that no sound was coming out. I tried again, but I was still mute.

"Are you dumb," the boy with the curly light brown hair asked.

I must've given him a look that said 'Excuse me?' because the heavier boy turned to me and said, "What Pippin means is that, are you mute?"

I nodded my head.

He nodded his head after me and continued, "Do you remember your name or where you're form?"

I hesitated there a bit. If I replied 'yes' then I would have to figure out some way to explain everything, although if I answered no they may not trust me. I took the easier route out and shook my head no. The one named Pippin smiled really big.

"Then how about we give you a name? At least until you remember your's."

I nodded my head. At least a name is better than no name.

"How about we name her Swallow?"

"Why Swallow, Pip?" asked the boy with the longer, curly blonde hair.

Pippin shrugged, "She seems fragile, like a bird. Swallows are also very beautiful birds. I just thought it matched her."

The boy who received the reply shook his head and said, "Swallows are beautiful birds, but Swallow is no name for a girl."

The boy with bright blue eyes spoke up, "Then what do you suggest Merry?"

Merry thought about it for a bit. Then a mischievous grin broke out on his face, "How about we name her Rosie. Just for our dear Samwise!"

The heavier boy blushed, so I assumed he was Samwise.

"No," Samwise said after calming down a bit, "Why don't we name her Elwing?"

Pippin looked at Sam oddly, "Isn't that an Elvish name?"

"Yes it is."

"But she's human!"

The boy with dark curls chuckled at the two men, "Why don't we call her Adela? We can call her Adie for short, too."

The boys nodded their heads in agreement to the name.

Merry then realized something, "We haven't introduced ourselves yet," he turned to me and said, bowing, "My name is Meriadoc Brandybuck. You can call me Merry for short," he then turned to the boy who suggested the name 'Swallow', "This is my first cousin, Peregrin Took, but you can call him Pip or Pippin," after that he turn to the boy with bright blue eyes, "That's Frodo Baggins. He's also mine and Pip's cousin. Sitting next to him is his best friend and gardener, Samwise Gamgee."

Samwise came in saying, "But you can call me Sam though, Miss."

I nodded my head a smiled a bit. Then I looked towards the 'floor' of the raft and saw that they had big feet. Big and very hairy feet. If I had my voice then I would've probably screamed (Ed always told me I blew the smallest of things out of proportion). I sat up and pointed to their feet, attempting to convey my question.

Frodo seemed to understand what I was getting at. He smiled and said, "We're Hobbits. We live in the Shire within a town called Hobbiton."

I nodded my head only somewhat understanding. The raft jolted slightly as we hit land. We walked and I got colder. I was still soaked and the mist from the water plus the rain that was starting to fall didn't help me a bit. The hobbits were about 2 or 3 feet shorter than me when we were standing. Pippin looked at me and asked, "Why are you wearing trousers?"

"That's probably what they wear where she's from," replied Merry. Pippin nodded and we continued on for several days, filled with endless questions. We finally reached a wooden gate. A man opened a sliding peep hole and saw me. I pointed down. He closed the taller peephole and opened a smaller one.

"What do you want," the older man asked.

"We are headed for the Prancing Pony."

The old man closed the peep hole again and opened the gate, "Four Hobbits all the way from the Shire and a woman! What business brings you to Bree?"

"We wish to stay at the inn," Frodo said, and continued with a slight quiver in his voice, "Our business is our own."

The old man stepped to the side granting us access to the village, "All right, young sir, I meant no offence. Tis Ol' Harry's job to ask questions after nightfall. There's been talk of strange creatures abroad. Can't be too careful now."

We quickly walked off, hearing the relocking of the gate. The smell of alcohol and smoke surrounded the area. There was a sign up ahead with a horse on it that said 'The Prancing Pony'. We entered and the smell from outside quickly intensified, but also held scents of food.

The Prancing Pony was warm and had small fires going in a few fireplaces. Frodo went over to the innkeeper. The innkeeper was a middle aged man who looked friendly enough. When he noticed Frodo and the rest of us he said, "Hello little masters and you miss. If you'd like we have some nice Hobbit sized rooms, as well as regular size, Mr.…"

"Underhill," Frodo quickly replied, "My name is Underhill."

The innkeeper nodded and Frodo continued on, "We are friends of Gandalf the Grey. Can you tell him we have arrived?"

The innkeeper frowned slightly. He face made it seem like he was in thought, and started muttering, "Gandalf…. Gandalf… Oh! Oh yes! I remember. Elderly chap, big grey beard, pointy hat. Not seen him for six months."

Sam leaned in close to Frodo, "What do we do now," he whispered.

Frodo replied, "For now I think we should put our stuff in our room."

We nodded our heads and followed Frodo upstairs. I sat my bag down in the corner hoping it would dry off and not be covered in mold. Then we went back down stairs to the warmth and the hobbits ordered four half pints of ale. Merry finished his quickly and went to go get another one. Sam was glancing around the room nervously as time carried on. Frodo was quick to reassure his friend as he said with a calm voice that I believed to be faked, "He'll come Sam. He'll come."

I spotted a man in the back corner. His face was hidden beneath the hood of his cloak, and was slightly illuminated when he took in a breath of his pipe. Merry sat back down and I heard Pip ask, "What is that?!"

"This, my friend, is a pint."

"It comes in pints? I'm getting one!"

Pippin quickly stood up, and hurried over to the bar. Sam cried after him in vain, "You've got a whole half already!"

The men over at the bar looked at us and then quickly looked away when we caught them. Sam nerves were probably going into over drive right now. I felt sorry for the little hobbit because if he didn't settle down soon, he was probably going to have a heart attack. Sam then looked over at the man who caught my eye earlier and whispered to Frodo again, "That fellow's done nothing but stare at you since we've arrived."

Frodo looked over and then called over the innkeeper, which we learned earlier that his name was Butterbur. "Excuse me, that man in the corner, who is he?"

Butterbur looked over to the man he was referring too, and then quickly turned back, slightly uncomfortable. "He's one of them Rangers. They're dangerous folk they are, wandering in the wild. What his name is, I haven't heard, but he's known around here as Strider."

"Strider," Frodo repeated the name.

'Hmm,' I thought, 'Strider. That's mysterious.'

I looked over again, and the man immediately looked more attractive, 'Damn female senses! He's supposed to be dangerous, not attractive. Just because he suddenly became 'mysterious' doesn't mean you have the right to go around thinking he's attractive. How dare you betray common sense!'

I suddenly heard Pippin say, "Baggins? Sure I know a Baggins! He's over there. Frodo Baggins. He's my second cousin once removed on his mother's side and my third cousin, removed twice on his father's side. Now if you'll follow me…"

I stared at Pippin shocked, 'Pippin! If your cousin uses a fake name, I think it's obvious that he doesn't want _anyone_ _to_ _know _his real name!'

Frodo looked towards his cousin. He ran over and tried to pull him away from the group, but Pippin pushed him down. Something was thrown into the air, and then Frodo vanished. I stood straight up out of my seat trying to find him, when I saw that the hooded man was pulling Frodo upstairs. Sam noticed and quickly headed towards the stairs. Merry grabbed a candelabra and Pippin grabbed a chair before following Sam. I took my time walking over to the stairs, trying to look casual. We didn't want anyone unwanted to follow us now.

I heard the door open and Sam yelled, "Let him go or I'll have you Longshanks!"

I hurried up the steps and peered into the room. The man had pulled off his cloak and I saw that he had blue eyes so light that they almost looked grey. His black hair went to his shoulders in waves and his beard was scruffy. He had a sword strapped to his hip and he looked toned.

'Well,' I thought to myself again, 'I can't exactly say he's _not_ attractive.'

He said in a smooth voice, "You have a stout heart, little hobbit, but that alone will not save you." He then turned to Frodo, "You cannot stay here any longer, Frodo. They are coming."

"Who's coming," asked Pippin a little frightened.

Strider brushed off Pippin's question and told us to collect the stuff from our room. I was about to follow when Sam said,"Don't worry about getting your stuff, Adie. We'll get your bag for you."

I nodded my head and smiled gratefully. Then I turned to Strider who was collecting extra pillows from the room. He noticed me staring at him and turned to face me.

"How did a young girl like you start traveling by yourself with four hobbits?"

I thought about how I should answer this. He didn't know I was a mute yet, so I pointed at myself.

"You?"

I shook my head no.

"I?"

I put my hand parallel to the ground, making it tip side to side.

"I'm?"

I nodded my head rapidly and then looked around the room as if I lost something.

"Looking?"

I shook my head again and repeated my actions.

"Searching?"

I almost deadpanned. Then I started roaming around the room, trying to look confused. Then I heard Strider sigh, "Wouldn't it be easier for you to just tell me instead of playing this game?"

I looked at him with my hands on my hips, trying to give him a look that said 'Don't you think I would if I could?' That was when the hobbits came back into the room with our belongings. Strider walked towards them and asked how I came to be a part of their company.

"Well," Pippin started, "We found her drowning in the river we were on."

"She's forgotten her name and where she's from. We didn't want to leave her alone, especially since she's mute," Frodo finished. Strider looked back towards me and I gave him a very triumphant look. He rolled his eyes, which the hobbits didn't notice. 'Jerk,' I quickly thought. Then he left the room with the pillows he gathered. A couple minutes later he came back without the pillows.

"What did you do with the pillows," Frodo asked.

Again, Strider brushed off the question, "Lie down and get some sleep. We leave at first light."

I laid down next to Pippin and Merry. It took me a while to get to sleep because I couldn't stop thinking about this place I ended up in. I still wasn't sure what a hobbit was, people dressed like it was the Renaissance Fair here, Strider talked way too formal for it to be a Renaissance Festival, and I had no clue where I was. Eventually I fell asleep, but it didn't feel like long because I was scared awake by a dying whale noise.

"What are they?"

"They were once men. Great kings of men. Then Sauron the Deceiver gave them nine rings of power. Blinded by their greed, they took the rings without question. One by one they fell into darkness and are now slaves to Sauron's will. They are Nazgûl, Ringwriaths, neither living nor dead. At all times they feel the presence of the ring, drawn to the power of the One," he paused, looking at Frodo, "They will never stop hunting you."

After we were sure the Ringwriaths were gone, Strider suggested we all try to get some sleep. I went back to where I was laying before. 'My hair is going to be a horrible mess in the morning,' I thought as my conscience left me again.

**AN: How do ya'll like it? I'm pretty sure it's longer (I don't know because I originally wrote this in one big word document and am currently copy/pasting the chapters to get them right) and was fixing it while I was/am writing chapter 3. If you guys have any questions, or any ways to make this better (or if my main character is becoming a Sue, with which I beg you to please tell/warn me so I can fix her.) Review. Also once I get the chance I may change a few things from the first chapter. I also need to give credit to a website where I got her new name (It is under the Hobbit section.) DARK SHIRE net(slash)jhkim(slash)rpg(slash)lordoftherings(sla sh).**

**Please Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

We slept for the rest of the night, feeling safer than before. When the sun started peeking through the window, Strider woke us up.

"Come now, girl, wake up. We have to get going."

I hit his hand away from my shoulder. "Five more minutes," I tried to say but no sound came out. I turned over and looked into Strider's bright, blue-grey eyes, glaring hard. He didn't seem like he was going to give up soon. Admitting defeat I reluctantly sat up and got my bag. Before we left Bree, we bought a pony named Bill and put our stuff on his back. I kept my bag on my shoulders though. We traveled for about two hours when Pippin, Merry, and Sam stopped to unpack Bill. Strider looked back confused. I looked back, also, and quickly turned around so Strider wouldn't see my smirk. One of the perks with traveling with Hobbits, as I have learned, is that you will never go hungry.

"Gentlemen, we do not stop until nightfall."

"What about breakfast," Pippin asked.

"You've already had it."

"We've had one, yes, but what about second breakfast?"

Strider turned away and continued walking. Pippin looked shocked and slightly confused. Merry explained to him, "I don't think he knows about second breakfast, Pip."

"What about Elevensies," Pippin continued, sounding more fidgety than he should, "Luncheon? Afternoon Tea? Dinner? Supper?! He knows about them, doesn't he?"

"I wouldn't count on it."

Strider took two apples out of his pack and threw them to the hobbits. He started walking again and I was about to follow when I heard Pippin cry out in pain. I turned around and looked to see if he was alright. He nodded and smiled.

"Come now," we heard Strider yell.

I mentally sighed as I started following our "leader", '_You were the one who hit him with the apple in the first place. Least you could do is apologize to him._'

A little voice in my head replied, '_Well Pip was complaining that he was hungry, and Strider did give him food._'

'_I get that_,' I countered with the voice in my head, '_but he still hit him._'

Merry quickly whispered to Frodo, "How do we know this Strider is a friend of Gandalf's?"

"I think the servant of enemy would look fairer and feel fouler," Frodo replied, thoughtfully.

"He's foul enough."

"We have no choice but to trust him."

"But where is he leading us," inquired Sam, joining the conversation.

"To Rivendell, Master Gamgee. To the House of Elrond," Strider answered; making them aware he heard the whole conversation.

Sam's face lit up as he started talking to the pony, "Did you hear that Bill? Rivendell! We're going to see the Elves!"

'_Elves_,' I thought, picturing tiny people baking cookies in trees along with other countless images associating with the word; small beings building or making things for other people to use. Or in _Ella Enchanted_'s case, singing and dancing for the man. I mentally laughed at the thought.

We continued on in the silence for several days, only the hobbits made small talk and they usually did it at night after we made camp. I laid down on a blanket that I used as a bed, and looked at my hair. It was a horrible mess of tangles and fly-aways and I was tempted to chop it all off. Slowly I fell asleep only to be woken up later by singing. I turned over and saw Frodo looking at Strider, who was singing.

"Who is she? This woman you sing of," Frodo asked.

Strider seemed shocked that Frodo was awake, but he placed on his emotionless face.

"'Tis the lady of Lúthien. The Elf-maiden who gave her love to Beren, a mortal man."

"What happened to her?"

"She died."

'_Lovely_,' I thought sarcastically, '_They write songs about elf-maidens dying. What is an elf-maiden? Do all of their inter-species relationships end in death? I should find some way to ask._'

The next day we walked, as usual. When it was late afternoon, Strider pointed out some ruins on a hill. A really big hill that looked like a pain to climb.

"This was once the great watchtower of Amon Sûl. We shall rest here tonight."

We continued walking up the hill and my thighs burned. It was dusk when we reached a clearing for us to camp in. Strider was going to go somewhere, but before he did, he placed four swords by the hobbits.

"These are for you. Keep them close. I'm going to look around. Stay here."

Right before he left, I grabbed his shirt. I pointed to myself like I was asking where my weapon was. His eyebrows lifted and he turned around. When he turned back around, he was holding a big, thick stick. He put it in my hands. I gave him a look that I really hope looked like, 'Are-You-Flippin-Kidding-Me-You-Giant-Douche-Bag.'

He smirked at me and went on his merry way into the forest that was on the other side of the tower. I felt tempted to take this big stick and shove it up his butt. Slowly I went back to the camp we made and sat by the fire Merry and Pippin started. Frodo was asleep and Sam was about to start cooking. Disdainfully, I looked at my stick, '_Nice to meet you stick. My name is Wynter, although, the name Adela is growing on me. I might steal it._'

About an hour later Frodo woke up. He turned around and saw that there was a fire going and immediately started yelling, "What are you doing?!"

Merry replied happily, "Tomatoes, sausages, and crispy bacon."

"We saved some for you Mr. Frodo," Sam added on.

Frodo started stomping on the fire trying to kill its light, "Put it out you fools! Put it out!"

'_Hmm_,' I thought, '_And my brother says I over react._'

My voice in my head, which I should tell you sounds like the Queen of England sometimes, said, '_You only over react to small things. I'm shocked you took big, hairy feet so well._'

"Oh, that's nice. Ash on my tomatoes," Pippin complained.

Then there was the dying whale noise again. The crazy, black-clad riders found us. Frodo and the others quickly grabbed onto the swords, clutching tightly. I grabbed my stick thinking, '_Better some pathetic attempt at protection then no protection!_'

We ran to the top of the watch tower and all of us stood in a circle with our backs facing inwards. The Ringwriaths stepped into the clearing with their swords brandished. Sam, apparently the bravest one out of all of us, stood forward and attacked.

"Back you devils," he cried, but was quickly thrown to the side. Merry and Pippin stood in front of Frodo, only to be shoved apart. I lifted up my big stick and hit the oncoming ex-king with all my might. But then I heard the sound of wood breaking and saw that my stick was broken in half. As were Merry and Pippin were, I got shoved away. Before I stood back up I grabbed my other piece of wood and threw it at one of the other Ringwriaths.

The wood hit it with a satisfying _thunk _although it didn't seem to faze the rider. I was just happy I hit something. Then I turned to look at Frodo, who slipped on a ring and disappeared. Panic rose through me because I didn't know if he was where he put the ring on, or somewhere else. The rider took his sword and stabbed down, emitting a scream from the air. It was now that Strider came back; magically bearing a torch he didn't have before. He used his sword and fought off the other riders.

Frodo reappeared, and I quickly ran over to him, feeling as if I owed him some kind of debt for taking me in and looking after me. I just hoped the wound that was given to him wasn't too bad because I don't think he would be able to make it.

**A/N: So who likes the fact that I gave her a stick instead of a weapon? I actually got the idea from a 'What do Lord of the Rings Characters Think of You' Quiz on quizilla. It was what Gandalf thought "-****proved yourself by your unorthodox combat skills." And then I thought, A BIG STICK! Because I've never seen that happen before in the fics I've read, so I hope you guys liked that. Next chapter includes the Council of Elrond, so I may take a while in finishing that because there is a lot of stuff I want to have happen in that chapter. Personally, I think my character is looking great so far, but if your opinions are different, please let me know. **

**Review =)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Adela's(or Wynter if you guys prefer that. In all honesty Adela is growing on me) thoughts are now italicized so it should be easier to differentiate when someone is speaking and she is thinking. **

"Frodo! Mr. Frodo," Sam made it over to Frodo before I did. He placed a hand on Frodo's arm when I made it over. Frodo's face was sickly pale, making his blue eyes stand out so much more. Carefully, I put a hand over his and jerked back.

'_Holy crap. He's burning up._'

Strider picked up the blade that stabbed Frodo and inspected it. Sam cried for him to help his best friend. I felt a wave of homesickness, thinking about Edmund and Haru. It was quickly forgotten about because that's when I heard Strider he wasn't able to help Frodo.

"He needs Elvish medicine."

Strider picked up Frodo and started walking towards a dense forest. Sam ran to catch up with Strider. Merry and Pippin, now holding, torches and followed along. Strider yelled, "Hurry!"

I quickly went to grab the other half of my stick and ran to the glow of the torches. From the back of the group, I saw Sam trembling. Strider's fast walk sped up and Frodo groaned. Sam looked up at his friend and from the light of the fire I saw his eyes were watering. My homesickness came back in a giant tsunami.

"We're six days away from Rivendell! He'll never make it," Sam cried, the worry and pain evident in his voice. Frodo was going delirious and calling for Gandalf. After only traveling for less than half an hour, by my guess, we stopped. We stopped in a clearing where three large statues were at. Strider laid Frodo down on the over grown greenery.

Sam sat by Frodo and lightly touched his forehead. "He's going cold," his voice cracked when he said cold. I sat next to him hesitantly. Lightly, I put my arm around his shoulder and pulled him into a hug. It was one of those awkward hugs though, where you aren't really sure how to comfort someone.

"Is he going to die," Pippin asked, his voice laced with worry.

"He's passing into the Shadow World. He'll soon become a Wraith like them."

Frodo gasped, his eyes opening up wide. Strider looked into the forest, thinking, "Sam do you know the Athelas plant?"

Sam stared at him confused, "Athelas?"

"Kingsfoil."

"Kingsfoil. Aye, it's a weed."

"It may slow down the poison. Hurry."

Sam ran into the forest. Strider turned towards us, "We'll be back as soon as we find the plant. Keep safe."

And then he followed Sam

About fifteen minutes later, after counting out each agonizing second, Strider came back. With a white flower and stems in his hand. And someone was with him. A very pretty someone. She started speaking in a weird gibberish type language, her black hair glowing in the moonlight. All I understood was her calling Frodo's name.

"Who is she," Pippin whispered to Sam.

Sam's eyes dazed and I swear, if this was an anime, his eyes would've turned into hearts. Big pink hearts and there would be flowers falling in the background. "_Thank goodness reality isn't like that_," I thought.

"She's an Elf," he whispered back, eyes locked on the tall woma- I mean elf.

"_Elf-girl? Elf-woman_," I mentally groaned, "_Why does it even matter. It's not like I'll be talking to anyone anytime soon. As long as she still bakes cookies in a tree, I won't even care that she's tall… and insanely pretty... and skinny. With curves. They better have some cookies._"

"He's fading," her voice resonating through the night, "He's not going to last. We must get him to my father."

Strider lifted up Frodo and set him on a horse that the elf brought with her. After he made sure Frodo was secure, he talked quietly with the elf. She took hold of the reins which Strider immediately put his hands over. They began speaking again, in the gibberish language. Merry's faced lined with worry and he finally asked, "What are they saying?"

The raven-haired beauty stared deeply into the ranger's eyes, "I do not fear them."

She mounted the horse behind Frodo. Strider turned his head up to look at her, "Arwen, ride hard. Do not look back."

The horse ran and Strider yelled out. "_Oh my guacamole_," I thought exasperated, "_What the hell is with them talking in a language that no one here understands? I mean, come on, is it that hard to speak in English?!_"

Samwise, mortified at the fact that Strider just let his best friend ride out with an unknown elf, asked, "What are you doing? Those Wraiths are still out there!"

The ranger looked back to us, "Pack up. We travel until we reach Rivendell."

And he did he mean 'until we reach Rivendell'. We barely stopped for the next three days. Pippin was dragging his feet, looking depressed with dark bags under his eyes. Actually, I'm pretty sure we all had bags under our eyes. Even Strider did, even though they didn't appear until after the second day with no sleep. Merry was becoming irritable at the slightest thing and poor Sam barely had the strength to keep walking. His eyes were unfocused staring at nothing as his mouth stayed in a straight line. Worry weighing him down like carrying a backpack full of bricks.

By mid-day we heard the faintest sounds of a waterfall. Then by nightfall, we reached a beautiful city. With waterfalls. Lots of them.

"Welcome to Rivendell," Strider called out with true enthusiasm. Something that we hadn't had in three days. A tall, beautiful man (which is a very odd word used to describe a male, but it is the only word that fits.) dressed richly in what appeared to be a long shirt with pants. They were a deep purple color with gold embroidery. He faced Strider, bowing his head, "**_Gisuilon. _**_**Êl síla erin lû e-govaned vîn.**"_

In reply, the ranger bowed, "_**Mae g'ovannen**."_

The man faced us, "I am Lord Elrond. Welcome to Rivendell. I offer you refuge here until your friend heals."

"Th-Thank you sir," Sam said.

Other people came over to face us, seeming to appear out of the shadows. They lead us through moon-lit hallways. One by one we were shown to different rooms. By the time we reached the room I would be staying in, I was so out of it I crashed onto the bed and passed out.

My body slowly drifted back into conciseness. I heard cloth rustling in a soft breeze. Slowly, I forced my eyes open. A soft light was filtering through slightly transparent, white curtains. I turned over in the soft bed and saw that there was a screen.

I pulled my body out of bed and walked lightly to look behind the screen. There was an old fashioned tub. There was already water in it, but when I dipped my hand in it, the water was cold.

"_Hmmm_," I thought, "_Guess that this was from last night._"

I looked at my clothes. Quickly I took them off and dipped them in the water. The water immediately turned brown from where my clothes touched it.

"_Oh my gods_," I thought, "_This is so gross_."

I was scrubbing away at my clothes and then a knock came at the door. Panicking, I ran to get a sheet to cover myself up. The elf who took Frodo, Arwen I think her name was, came into the room. She looked at my cloth covered form and then to the tub, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"You didn't have to do that," she said, taking the clothes out of the water and setting them up to dry.

I looked to the ground, hugging my sheet closer to my body. Her skirts started rustling and I saw her light blue covered feet enter my line of vision. She brought her hand up my chin and lifted my head until our eyes were looking at each other.

"Strider has told me of your… condition."

I kept down the frown that was forming on my face, "_Ugh they make it seem as if I'm going to die._"

Arwen went over to the bath, draining out the water, "I will get some water so you can bathe. I will be right back."

She paused at the door for a second and turned to face me, "I know you cannot speak, but I hope that I can give you company if you need it."

I nodded, smiling slightly. She exited the room and I quickly ran to my clothes. I gathered them up into my arms and placed them in the sun to dry. Quietly, I went to sit on the bed, laying my head on my knees.

"_I haven't seen any cookies yet, but I guess elves aren't all that bad_," I thought, closing my eyes and drifting into sleep again.

**A/N: Soooo I meant to post this a while ago, but I got writers block and when I thought I could work on this while visiting my family, my aunt didn't give me the Wi-Fi password (Because stupid Elrond just HAD to throw in his elvish.) This chapter was supposed to be longer, but I guess I'll just keep on working so I can hopefully get the next chapter up quicker. And the Elvish at the end is pretty much "Welcome, a star shines upon the hour of our meeting" and "I greet you".**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: So, just thought that before you get into this chapter you should know that LAL stands for Look-A-Like. And that none of this belongs to me... well character wise for this chapter at least.**

Someone shook my shoulder, lightly at first. I hit away their hand and tried to go back asleep, but then the person just shook my shoulder harder. With great reluctance, I opened up my eyes and saw Arwen standing above me. A playful smile was on her face, "Come now. Your bath is ready."

I sat up and saw that the screen was removed from around the old fashioned tub. Steam was rising out of it, looking warm and inviting. Quickly I walked over to the tub. Peaking over my shoulder I saw that Arwen was still looking at me. Putting a barrier around my pride and preparing myself for the embarrassment that was soon to follow, I dropped the sheet and got into the bathtub.

The warm water embraced me and I felt drowsy again. A light scent came from the water, but I didn't know what it was. Suddenly I felt a pair of hands touch my hair. I jumped and saw Arwen holding my hair, "Do you mind if I help you wash your hair?"

Quickly, I shook my head. She reached for a jug of water and poured some of it on my hair. Soothingly she rubbed my scalp. I took a bar of soap and I started rubbing my skin, getting the dirt off. The water soon turned brown and murky.

"_I wonder how bad I stunk_," I thought, slightly embarrassed that I didn't even have the chance to bathe in a river, at the very least. Arwen poured clean water over my hair to get the oil she put in it while I was silently cursing the fact that I couldn't talk to her, to thank her or engage in conversation otherwise. A brush ran through my hair as Arwen started to talk, "Would you like me to get you some clothes? There are some dresses I have that might fit you."

I looked over to my clothes in the sun and shook my head. She looked where I was looking and slightly nodded. At least that's what I pictured in my head. "You wish to keep your old clothes. I guess since you already washed them," she said with a light chuckle in her voice, "you plan on wearing them again."

I nodded. With my hands and arms, I tried to make a shape that looked like a house and then I tapped the side of my head where the temple was.

"They… remind you of home," Arwen asked hesitantly.

I turned to look at her and nodded, smiling. It feels nice having someone understand you a little bit. She smiled back. For a little while longer I stayed in the bath while Arwen brushed out my hair. "_It's almost like having an older sister. If they weren't evil like everyone else says they are_," I thought.

Soon after she finished my hair, she excused herself. A couple minutes later, I pulled myself from the lukewarm water, wrapping a towel like cloth around my body. Gently, I padded over to where my clothes were out in the sun. They felt warm and dry so I quickly changed into them, savoring the warmth the sun gave them. I began walking toward the door feeling warm and much cleaner than I had in a long time.

It took some time, but eventually I made it outside. The weather was chilly, which I guess considering I've been here for about three weeks, would make sense. It should be about October now. I zipped up my jacket and started walking. A few minutes later I heard rustling around me. Stopping, I listened to see if it would happen again. It was quiet so I continued walking. Soon, the rustling came again and then I felt my back hit the ground. Hard.

"Adie," Pippin yelled with a big smile on his face, "Guess who we just found here!"

"She wouldn't know who Pip. She hasn't met him before," Merry said, picking himself and Pippin off of me when he noticed my pain.

"Oh that's true!"

I was actually curious who they found here. It's just that they kept talking to each other and I couldn't ask, well sign I guess, who they found.

"Oh, never mind about that Pip," Merry sighed, "Let's just take her to meet him!"

They grabbed onto my hands and dragged me with them. We made so many different turns, I couldn't keep track of them all. Finally, we reached a balcony with a few stone benches. Sam was there sitting across from an older... fine old man. He was writing in a book and when Sam called out a greeting to us, the man looked up.

His face had many creases, but he seemed to have smile lines. The hands that were holding the book he was writing in were big, but seemed fragile. "Uncle Bilbo," Merry said, "this is the girl we were talking about. The one who we found in Brandywine River. Adela, this is Bilbo Baggins."

Bilbo stood up and held out his hand, "It is nice to meet you. These boys talked about you as if you were some kind of mystery, but I can see why. Are those clothes common for young girls your age to wear?"

I nodded my head while I took his hand. Then I pointed to my clothes and lifted my hand over my head.

"Taller people wear them too," Pippin asked. I tilted my hand side to side. A part of me wanted to point at Bilbo to try and convey the word older, but I didn't know whether that would be rude or not.

"I think she is trying to say that girls older than her wear the clothing also," Bilbo said. I almost cried tears of joy. Meeting two people who could somewhat understand me in less than a day? The sun seems to be shining brighter! Bird songs are sounding more cheerful! Quickly I nodded my head, a giant smile covering my face.

Pippin had a face that was like he was saying 'Oh', but without the sound. "Uncle Bilbo," Merry said quickly, as if he just got an idea and wanted to tell someone it before he forgot it, "You should tell dear Adie here about your adventures. I'm sure she'd love to hear the stories!"

Bilbo chuckled and sat back down onto the bench. "Come here," he said, patting the spot next to him. I sat next to him softly and then his face became thoughtful, "Now it all started with a hole in the ground…"

By the time Bilbo got to the part about Beorn the Skin Changer, the moon was out and the temperature dropped. Bilbo led the four of us to a dining hall and there we ate while he continued the story. We made it to the river in Mirkwood when Bilbo yawned, setting off a chorus of them from Pippin, Merry, and Sam.

"I suggest we all head to bed," Bilbo said. He and the other hobbits said goodnight, leaving me to find my room again. That was when I learned it was just a little bit down one hall that led away from the hall.

"_Awesome-possum man! I don't have to be a lost puppy anymore._"

When I entered my room, I saw my backpack sitting in front of the bed. I went over to it and unzipped it. Cautiously I sniffed the inside of the bag, but it smelled okay.

"_Shouldn't the mold smell? I mean it did get wet on multiple occasions. My precious I-Pod too…_ "

I reached into my bag and took out said item. Slowly I traced a crack in the screen down to the circular button. Just for kicks and giggles I pressed the button, and the light turned on. My eyes grew big and watery as I touched the screen, moving between my app pages. A couple tears escaped and if I could yell I probably would've.

"_My precious I-Pod! It lives! It breathes in electronic life again!_"

I quickly looked through my backpack to get my head-phones when a tag fell out of the pack. I picked it up and read 'Brown and Turquoise pack. Water-proof. Do not wash with hot water. '

"_Well then, I guess Edmund was right about the tag stuff…_"

I plugged in my head phones and turned on Lonely by 2ne1. The guitar started and I left my room. I got back outside to where I was sitting with Bilbo and the others before. Leaning back against a bench I looked up at the sky. My mind started to drift back to a memory—

"What's this," Edmund asked turning on a song from my I-Pod.

"It's K-Pop," I said, "Haru showed me some songs and I really liked them, so I looked around for some more."

"You two are so weird. You can't even understand what they're saying."

"Yes I can. They're saying, 'Baby I'm so lonely, I'm so lonely'."

"But they're already saying that in English. It doesn't count," he sighed.

I shrugged, "You didn't specify what I couldn't understand."

I remember for the next hour or two all we did was talk until Haru came over and they went out to the movies.

Sighing, I closed my eyes and turned up the volume on the current song, Sistar's Lead Me. I felt something tap my head and I brushed it off, sitting up a little bit. Then there was a tap on my shoulder and I turned to look behind me. There was nothing there, so I turned back around only to find a kind, old, really long bearded Magneto staring at me. I jumped and dropped my I-Pod, cracking the screen again. Quickly I pressed the button again, but it didn't turn on.

"_No! Why do the good die young_," I mentally shouted, almost crying.

"I am sorry child. I did not mean to frighten you," the Magneto look alike said.

I nodded slightly. The guy seemed nice enough, but the fact that he was just staring at me when I opened my eyes kind of made me slightly uncomfortable. For all I know, he could be some crazy old pervert!

"I was trying to get your attention, but it seemed as if you couldn't hear my with your umm… well those white buds in your ears."

Okay, maybe he isn't a crazy old pervert, but can you blame me? I tried to make my face look apologetic. He seemed to get the message, "It's quite alright, but may I ask what you were doing."

I tapped the side of my head and then went into thinking position. Magneto LAL chuckled as he sat down on the bench across from where I was.

"My name is Gandalf. Gandalf the Grey. I do not believe we have met, although you may have heard of me."

I nodded my head, remembering Frodo crying out his name. Quickly, I stood up holding out my hand to shake his. Obviously they don't seem to have that tradition here. He looked confused at my hand and I lowered my hand, embarrassed. Then I tried pointing to myself and then wrote 'Adela' in the air backwards to me, so it would hopefully look right to him.

"So your name is Adela, correct?"

I nodded. It feels nice when people understand you. Really nice. Like even eating chocolate doesn't feel this good. Well that might be an exaggeration, but that's how I felt.

"It is very nice to meet you. If you don't mind me asking, how did you come across Frodo and the others?"

I made my arms do a flow-y motion and then I grabbed onto my throat as if I couldn't breathe. Grabbing my collar, I tugged on it and then made it seem like the air came back to me.

"Hmm… They found you in a river. Tell me, how you ended up in that river."

I thought about how I could answer that. After a couple of minutes I came up with an idea. The only problem was that I needed dolls. About eight of them. I moved my arms as if I was playing with dolls and I made my face look pleading. Gandalf's face twisted in surprise, "You need dolls?"

I nodded and I put my hands to my mouth and rolled them over each other, bringing the down and if they were words tumbling out. A look of understand crossed his face, "You need them to explain. Alright, I will be right back."

About twenty minutes later he came back with an armful of dolls. He sat them down in front of me and I picked out four small dolls, two big male dolls, a female doll that was slightly smaller than the big male dolls, and finally a very small female doll. I held up the two male dolls and put their arms around each other, as if they were friends.

"Those two are friends."

I took the big female doll and one of the male dolls, mentally making a note that the one I sat down was Haru, and I made them hug.

"Are these two courting?"

I shook my head.

"Then they are family."

I nodded. I took the three dolls and I sat them up and with my fingers I tried to make them look like they were shooting across the "sky".

"You, along with your brother," he asked questioningly while I nodded my head, "and your brother's friend went to go to see a meteor shower. Then what happened."

I took the small female doll and I made it seem like she was whispering in doll me's ear. Then I threw the dolls up in the air. When the bigger female doll landed, I took the four smaller dolls and made them pick her up.

"A woman's voice was whispering inside your head, then you came here and the hobbits saved you. That is quite odd. Quite odd indeed."

We were quiet for several moments. Gandalf lit a pipe and started smoking. After the silence dragged on for several more minutes, I started playing with some of the dolls. Hey, I may almost be sixteen, but dolls are fun to play with sometimes. Suddenly Gandalf stood.

"I must meet with someone to discuss what we were talking about. You might find it in your best interest to keep quiet about what you told me. Goodnight," and he started to walk away.

Before he left to go down a hall he turned to me and said, "You may keep some of the dolls if you wish."

I nodded. The moon was casting light around the balcony. Looking mournfully over at my I-Pod, I took it and shoved it into my jacket pocket. Grabbing as many dolls as I could, putting some in my pockets when my arms couldn't fit anymore, I started towards my room. Something tells me some shit is about to hit the fan soon.

**A/N: Originally this was supposed to be two different chapters, but I figured I could put these two together for one long chapter (since my last one was the shortest to date). Review!**

**A/N Update: Okay, so I was looking at my Fellowship of the Ring book on my nook and it had a map of the Shire in which it politely told me that "it is Brandywine River". So I needed to fix that. On the bright-side to this fake out "update" I may be able to up date sometime this week. Depending on if I decide if I want to just have Council of Elrond and her day before together or not. **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Elvish is now bolded and italicized. I would have kept them italicized, but Adela's thoughts are in italics, so I thought that would get confusing. Also, how lucky do you guys feel? Two updates in 4 days? I feel pretty proud of myself! Enjoy! Also, on the off chance any of you are on the 1st season of the new Doctor Who series, there might be what could be considered a minor spoiler in here.**

The next day Sam woke me up. "Mr. Frodo is awake Adela. Come you must go visit him."

We went to Frodo's room. His complexion looked better. He looked over to us, "Adie!"

We went over and sat next to him on the bed. I waved and pointed to him. He seemed confused and I made a gagging motion and then put my hand in an okay sign. His face only seemed to get even more confused.

"What Adela is trying to ask is whether or not you are alright," Gandalf told Frodo. Frodo nodded his head in understanding and turn towards me.

"I am feeling much better, Thank you," he smiled. I smiled back softly. Soon he was out of bed, going out to meet Bilbo. Before they left they were talking about leaving soon and then I began to worry.

"_So what will happen now if they go back home? Will they take me with them? Will they leave me here? What if the elves don't want me to stay here?_"

"Do not worry so much, child," I heard Gandalf call from behind me. He smiled somberly the direction that Frodo left with Sam. His pipe was pressed between his lips and when he puffed out the smoke he made them different shapes. There was something nagging me though. I nudged Gandalf.

"Yes?"

I pointed to his beard and then made a motion of cutting off my hair and putting onto my chin. Gandalf began to laugh loudly and that was when Strider came into the room.

"Gandalf, Lord Elrond is-," the laughing cut him off and he looked at us strangely. "What happened," he asked wearily as if he were afraid of the answer.

"Young Adela here just asked me whether my beard was fake or not," Gandalf chuckled throughout the whole sentence, "Adie, child, I can guarantee that my beard is not fake."

I looked down, blushing. It was bad enough that I asked what seemed to be a stupid question here. What was worse, though, was the fact that Strider was here. And by the way he treats me it feels as if he hates me. Or wishes me dead, but is there really a difference in this world?

"Anyway, you said that Lord Elrond wished to see me?"

Strider's eyes snapped to Gandalf, "Yes Mithrandir, inside his study."

"Thank you then," Gandalf said standing and leaving the room. Strider stayed though. The silence was awkward and I would have tried to break it if I could, but I have no voice.

"Do you wish to take a walk with Arwen and me?"

My head shot up. Mister I-can-act-like-a-douche-if-I-want asked me to walk with him and my ideal big sister? I nodded my head, having nothing better to do anyway. We walked silently down the halls, Strider making an occasional comment, until we reached a garden where Arwen was sitting. She saw us and smiled.

"Hello Adela. Are you here to walk with us?"

I nodded, looking down slightly. I don't know what made me nervous all of the sudden, but the atmosphere felt different. Arwen stood, taking my hand within hers and she linked our arms together. She started walking down a path, leading to a secluded place. Strider followed, staying beside Arwen. They began making small talk, including me when they could.

While we were passing a large flower bush, a bundle of small flowers caught my eye. They had white petals, facing downwards almost as if they were dead. "_No,_" I thought, moving in to get a closer look at the flowers, "_They look more like fairy wings._"

I picked one and the inside held a smaller flower with green designs, seeming to have been painted onto them. Strider moved behind me and said, "These flowers are called Snowdrops."

Slowly nodding my head, I stared fascinated at the flower. It was so small yet it seemed so… pretty. I saw Arwen move out of the corner of my eye and she took the flower, taking out a book from within her pockets. She opened to a page with beautiful writing written on the crisp paper, and placed the flower in the middle of the page. Gingerly she shut the book.

"If we press the flower it will last longer."

I smiled gratefully. We continued walking when Arwen started staring at me. I looked at her quizzically, and Strider spoke up, "What is it?"

"I am just wondering how old Adela is. The way she acts can almost be seen as an adolescent," she said, "but there are times when she sits quietly and seems much older than that. Do you remember how old you are?"

A jolt ran threw me, "_That's right. I'm supposed to have amnesia. Well, I guess I could say my age and if any questions come up, just say that I remember that fact._"

I held up my hands for her to see. My left hand had all of the fingers spread out and my right hand had only one finger sticking up. Arwen's face turned into one of surprise, "You are quite young, little one."

I casually shrugged my shoulders, my mood dampened from how the subject came up and that I felt like a child here. Well, I am a child, but I usually feel older when I hang out with my brother and Haru. It's like they take me seriously. I feel as if I will not be listened to now that the fact that I'm fifteen is out.

The walk ended quickly after that. It was only about midday, so I found my way into the dining hall. Quietly I took a seat and began to eat the food that was on the table. Then I started thinking.

"_I wonder how much time has passed from when I was transported here. Is time even going in my world? I really hope time is just standing still there because if that isn't the case, I'm going to be so screwed with school._"

My thoughts then were interrupted by the opening of doors. I turned to where the sound was and I saw that there were elves walking into the Hall. Only two of them had blonde hair, while the other elf had dark hair. They were all talking and then they stopped. Grabbing an apple, I stood and then walked towards the hall that I needed to go down to get to my room. I just had to get past the elves first.

They were looking at me and I finally decided to screw it. I was getting nervous, so I ran down the hall until I reached my room. Quickly I pulled the door open and shut it. Know I might have been over-reacting, but they kind of scared me. I then realized that there wasn't anything to do.

"_What can a girl like me do until I get tired?_"

My eyes trailed around the room until I caught sight of the pile of dolls from last night.

"_Well… who's up for some no sound, re-enactments of Doctor Who?_"

I got up to the regeneration of the 9th Doctor before I was too tired to do anything else. There was a white nightgown that Arwen gave to me earlier laying over the top of a chair.

"If you plan on wearing your clothes that's okay, but at least change out of them when you sleep."

I put on the gown. The skirt billowed out around me and it reminded me of a white version of Kiki's dress from Kiki's Delivery Service. Quietly climbing into bed, I shut my eyes, listening to the sound of water running.

"Adela. Wake up now. It's morning and you have somewhere you need to be."

I opened my eyes and saw Arwen standing above me. "_Somewhere I need to be_," I thought, looking at her quizzically. She saw my confusion.

"My father has invited you to the Council that is being held today. He said that Mithrandir convinced him to let you come. Mithrandir said something about how you could be useful at the council."

I nodded slightly still not understand anything. She reached for a dark green dress on the chair and held it up to me. Realizing she was asking me to put on a dress, I immediately started to shake my head 'no'. I haven't shaved in over a month. There was no way in hell I was going to wear a dress.

"You need to wear it for the council."

I shook my head no again. Quickly I pointed to my clothes and then tried to sign that I would wear my clothes to represent my people. Which really was more like and bunch of mixed up hand signs. Deciding I had no other choice, I grabbed my clothes and ran out the door. No dresses until I can steal a knife or some other sharp object and shave.

When I was outside I quickly jumped into a bush. Hurrying so I couldn't get caught, I changed clothes and then casually walked out of the bush. Arwen was there looking very red. I shrunk down and gave an apologetic look, in which she responded with a sigh of defeat. Happily I jumped up, punching my fist in the air.

"_Score one for Adie! I mean Wynter. I probably shouldn't get used to this name. When I get back home I'll be back to Wynter._"

My little head voice came back, "_Well, you're Wynter when you go back home. Since you aren't home, why not keep Adela. What harm could come from it?_"

Silently agreeing with my small little voice, I followed Arwen into a circle of chairs, filled with people. To be more specific men. Well not all of them were "men" per say, but they were all males. Arwen tapped my shoulder, "I will be taking my leave now."

I nodded. Soon after I noticed that the group was staring and me. Quickly I caught sight of Frodo, who was sitting by Gandalf. Lucky for me, there was an open seat next to them. My pace quickened as I went to go sit next to them. I kept my head down and messed with my hair so that my bangs covered up my eyes.

A couple seconds passed and the elf who greeted us on the first night stood.

"Strangers from distant lands, friends of old, you have been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor. Middle-Earth stand upon-"

My mind started to drift, "_Middle-Earth? Why does that sound so familiar…_"

I remembered the conversation I had with Haru and Ed before I came here.

"_That can't be it. I mean I get that there is Gandalf here, who looks like Magneto, and Frodo, but it has to be a coincidence. There is no way I could be transported to a fictional story. It's impossible._"

Frodo left his seat beside me and he placed a gold ring on a platform in the middle of the Council circle. He seemed more relaxed once he dropped it. Then came the gasps, ooh's and ahh's with one guy actually saying, "So it is true!"

"_Okay_," I started thinking, "_What's so big about a tacky gold ring? I mean I get that gold prices are going up, but-_"

My thought was cut off by Mr. So-it-is-true's thrilling monologue about a dream.

"In a dream, I saw the eastern sky grow dark, but in the West a pale light lingered. A voice was crying, 'Your doom is near at hand. Isildur's Bane is found.'"

His voice trailed off as he moved closer to the ring. Slowly his hand reached out, as if to grab at it. "Boromir," Elrond's voice broke the tension as he jumped to his feet. Gandalf was standing, speaking a dark language. The open space, which was full of light, began to darken. A sound of thunder sounded through and I felt terrified. Have you ever gotten yelled at by your grandparents? Picture that except imagine all of your grandparents yelling at you at the same time. That's what it felt like.

Once he finished, things began to look normal again, although the fear was still fresh. Elrond looked pissed. Like even his funky, already mad looking eyebrows seemed to furrow even more.

"Never before has any voice uttered the words of that tongue here in Imladris."

"I do not ask for your pardon, Master Elrond, for the Black Speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the West. The Ring is all together evil."

"_Lovely_," I thought, "_Tacky gold rings are now evil. I thought these guys were sane and considered wise. How the hell can an inanimate object be evil?_"

Boromir, finally getting over the scolding he received from Gandalf, continued his speech.

"It is a gift! A gift to the foes of Mordor! Why not use this Ring? Long has my father, Steward of Gondor, kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands safe! Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy. Let us use it against him!"

Strider, thank goodness, spoke up, "You cannot wield it. None of us can. The One Ring answer to Sauron alone, it has no other master."

"And what would a Ranger know of this matter?"

A blonde elf, one that I recognized from the dining hall the previous evening, stood, "This is no mere Ranger. He is Aragorn, son of Arathorn. You owe him your allegiance."

I shook my head, "_No way. Just another cowinkie-dink. There is no way that I could be inside my brother's favorite movie trilogy. No way at all._"

"Aragorn? This is Isildur's heir?"

"And heir to the throne of Gondor."

"**_Havo dad, Legolas._**"

That did it. There was no way I could deny it anymore. I was stuck in a place that my brother knew everything about. My head dropped into my hands and I almost started crying. This isn't fair! Why couldn't I have been dropped off in the TARDIS or 221B Baker Street? I would have at least know SOMETHING that could keep me alive.

I felt a hand touch my shoulder, "Are you okay Adie?"

I looked up and saw Frodo. Nodding slightly, I fixed my position in my chair. I could go into my room and cry after this. Right now I just have to get through this hour, this minute, this second.

**A/N: Guess what? I'm awesome! I know I only put in like half of the Council in here, but I felt it was a good stopping place. Next chapter is the formation of the Fellowship! Hope you enjoyed. Please Review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I should probably stop pumping these chapters out. You guys may start expecting too much from me. Enjoy!**

_This means that she's thinking_

_**This means it's in Elvish**_

* * *

"You only have one choice. The Ring must be destroyed."

A short, not hobbit short, but short, thicker man stood up. He picked up an axe that was sitting next to his chair, "Then what are we waiting for?"

Running over to the ring he hit the ring with the axe. The blade shattered sending shards, and I brought my head to my knee to block the shards that headed my way. I don't want to blind and mute. Cautiously looking up, I saw Frodo grab his head. His face contorted in pain and Gandalf looked at him with concern.

" The Ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Glóin, by any craft that we here possess," Elrond started, " The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor, and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came. One of you must do this."

Now I don't know if anyone else saw this or not, but his eyes flickered over to Frodo. That didn't make me feel so great. "_It's like he is already on the chopping block before he even has a chance to say no._"

Boromir was once again back in his seat with his hand on his forehead like a facepalm. "_Hey! I know that internet meme. I know what's coming next… for now._"

"One does not simply walk into Mordor. Its Black Gates are guarded by more than just Orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep and the Great Eye is ever watchful. It is a barren wasteland riddled with fire, and ash and dust. The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand Men could you do this. It is folly!"

Legolas jumped to his feet, "Have you heard Lord Elrond has said? The Ring _must_ be destroyed!"

Gimli scoffed from his seat, "And I suppose you think you're the one to do it!"

"And what if we fail? What then? What happens when Sauron takes back what is his," Boromir, the ball of sunshine that he is, said to no one in particular.

"I will be dead before I see the Ring in the hands of an elf!"

That set of a domino effect of insults and anger. Everyone was standing and yelling, with Gandalf joining in. "_This is just like my family reunion._"

Frodo's quickening breath caught my attention. He seemed to be having some sort of panic attack, his eyes never leaving the Ring. Finally he tore his gaze away from it and stood.

"I will take it," he began softly, "I will take it. I will take the ring to Mordor!"

The Council quieted down and Gandalf looked back at Frodo forlornly. Everyone looked at Frodo and his nerves seemed to get the better of him. In a quiet voice he said, "Though I do not know the way…"

Gandalf walked towards Frodo, "I will help you bear this burden, Frodo Baggins, as long as it is your's to bear."

Aragorn strode over to Frodo, kneeling down in front of him, "If by my life or death I can protect you, I will. You have my sword."

Legolas joined in the group, "And my bow."

Gimli, not one to be over looked by the council, or pretty boys, stood. "And my axe," he stated proudly.

Boromir moved to stand in front of Frodo, "You carry the fate of us all, little one. If this is indeed the will of the Council, Gondor will see it done."

There was a rustling coming from behind the bushes and Sam came running out. He stood by Frodo, "Mr. Frodo's not going anywhere without me."

"No, indeed," Elrond started with a smile on his face, "It is hardly possible to separate you even when he is summoned to a secret council and you are not."

Merry and Pippin peeked out behind the columns that were lining the walkway leading away from the circle. Their eyes met and they came rushing out from their hiding spot. Elrond was looking peeved. Probably because people kept coming into this so called "Secret Council" and he couldn't get mad at them.

"_Guess they're coming out cause they know they won't get in trouble._"

"Oi! We're going too! You'd have to send us home tied in a sack to stop us."

"Anyway, you need people of intelligence on this sort of mission… quest… thing."

"Well that rules you out Pip," Merry replied. Pip smiled and nodded until he realized what Merry just said. His face was turned into one of a hurt and angry expression. Before he could reply Elrond continued, "Nine compani-"

"Excuse me, old friend," Gandalf started, "But I would like someone to join us on this quest."

He turned to look at me, "Adela, would you be willing to come along on this journey?"

Aragorn's face twisted into one of surprise, "You cannot bring her on this quest!"

"Why not," Gandalf questioned, "She has proven that she can fight. Even if it is an unorthodox method."

"Because she is six!"

I looked at Aragorn confused, "_When did I say I was six?_"

Then it clicked. I started to laugh, or at least the mute equivalent to laughing. Gripping my aching stomach tightly, I folded over myself. Tears were escaping my eyes as I shook my head no and spread my left hand out while my right hand held a single digit.

"Yes, that is six!"

I rapidly shook my head again, slowly becoming serious. Going one number at a time, I showed him on digit and then five.

"That equates to six," Boromir replied, looking annoyed.

Gandalf, bless his soul, seemed to understand, "What she is saying is that she is fifteen."

Boromir and Aragorn looked down slightly embarrassed. Gandalf, now in a happier mood, looked towards me. He was waiting for his question to be answered. The old guy was asking innocent me to travel with nine men across country. On a journey that I could possibly die from. I started to shake my head no, but then I caught sight of Frodo's big, bright blue eyes.

"Please Adie. I don't want to leave you here alone."

His tone and his eyes made my heart break a little. Mentally sighing in defeat, I stood and gave my small guardian a hug. He hugged me back whispering a quiet 'thank you' in my ear.

"Ten companions it is. You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring."

"Great," Pippin started nonchalantly, "Where are we going?"

I smiled softly at the hobbit. The council was dismissed and I quickly grabbed onto Gandalf's sleeve.

"Yes child, what is it?"

I lightly tapped my throat and brought it up so it looked like something was coming out of it.

"You want a voice, yes?"

I tilted my hand side to side. His mouth took the shape of an "o".

"You had your voice before you were transported here. You are asking me if I can give it back to you."

I nodded, even though he wasn't asking. He looked down at me thoughtfully and nodded, "I think I know of a book here that could help. I will find you if I find something helpful."

I smiled and hugged him. Then I ran to catch up with Aragorn. Casually I bumped into him to catch his attention. His face started flushing again, "I am sorry that I misunderstood you."

I shrugged and smiled. Then I noticed that he was walking beside Legolas. Smiling a little bit, I waved at him. He smiled back, bowing slightly.

"I am Legolas of Mirkwood. It is a pleasure to meet you Adela."

I nodded my head back. As an afterthought, though, I noticed that I was nodding a lot. I made a mental note to stop doing that. That was when Merry and Pippin jumped me, and by jumped I mean knocked me down to the ground again and began bombarding me with questions.

"How long have you remembered that you were fifteen," Pippin started.

"Do you remember anything else," Merry continued.

"Do you have family?"

"Will we travel to your home?"

"If we do travel to your home, will you leave us?"

"If you left us would you miss us?"

I closed my eyes, back aching and head pounding. "_If I get through this journey alive_," I thought, "_My back is going to be so screwed up._"

Aragorn and Legolas began to laugh at the pair's antics. I tried to motion for them to help me, but either they couldn't understand me or they were enjoying my pain. Frodo and Sam showed up and helped get Pip and Merry off of me. Nodding my head in thanks, I stretched.

"Why is a girl like you wearing men's clothing," Boromir asked. Apparently he was being a quiet creeper. I was about to reply when Pippin called out excitedly.

"She says it's common for girls her age and older to wear them!"

"Speaking of which," Merry continued, "When did you remember that?"

I started panicking a little bit. They were beginning to catch on. If I couldn't even handle the truth, it would probably kill these guys! That was when Arwen appeared though. A smile formed on my face, "_I don't have to answer the question now!_"

She reached us and smiled at me sadly, "Excuse me, but I must take Adela from your presence."

Her hand held mine as we began walking back to my room. She was silent when she laid out clothes that would be suitable for travel. Nervously, I poked her arm. When her eyes met mine, I sucked in a breath. Her eyes were so sad, with tears beginning to form. I hugged her and she rested her head on my hair.

Squeezing her one last time, I let go. I looked at her with a serious face and then used my fingers to make her mouth smile. She laughed, "I suppose you are right. I should keep a smile on my face."

Nodding, I smiled with her. I picked up the bag my clothes were supposed to be packed in, and began placing them inside. Arwen had a set of boots picked out for me. They weren't those "Oh my gosh I'm going to kill myself if I ever walk in these" boots. The heels were flat and it tied to just below my knee. I placed the boots inside my bag and I picked up a smaller bag. There was a hairbrush that Arwen gave to me and some cotton type pads in there.

"_Well, I guess elves do reproduce… even though they live forever… Do they eternally create perfect little babies that grow up and live forever and create more perfect little babies?_"

After the packing was done, Arwen left. Making sure no one was around, I took out my backpack and stuffed some of the dolls inside. Believe it or not, they made communicating a little bit easier… and they were fun to play with, but communication was the big reason why I was packing them. Then I caught sight of my broken stick.

"_Replacing it might be better. I highly doubt that Aragorn will bring a sword for me to attempt to train with._"

I went to go outside when my stomach began to growl. I walked down the hall towards the dining area and I saw that most of the Fellowship was together. "_Should I really refer to them as 'The Fellowship'? It seems… odd._"

Frodo was the first one to see me, "Adie, come eat with us!"

I walked over and sat next to Frodo. Sitting across from me was Boromir, who was glaring slightly at me. Feeling awkward, I grabbed a roll of bread and started nibbling on it. Sam looked over at me from his spot on the other side of Frodo.

"You don't usually eat much, do you Adela?"

I paused in my eating. Looking down at my bread thoughtfully, I remembered something similar that happened.

My family went out to dinner with Haru and his parents. We were sitting around a table covered in a white cloth with a candle sitting in the middle of it. The waitress came by to take our orders and she came to me last.

"What would you like?"

I told her I would have a small soup and salad. She jotted down what I told her and left. Haru turned to look at me from his place beside me.

"What is it?"

"Why don't you eat a whole lot? Even when I'm at your house, all I barely see you eat and when I do it's not a whole lot. Are you feeling okay? Is something wrong?"

I shook my head, "Nothing's wrong it's just I don't like eating a lot. When I eat too much I feel sick and tired and I don't like feeling like that. I'm fine Haru."

He looked at me one last time before nodding his head.

"Adie?"

My head shot up as I noticed that the others were looking at me. I looked down blushing and nodded my head as if to excuse myself. Quickly I went outside and began looking for a stick to use. My eyes were burning and my throat was closing up. I knew I was about to cry.

I walked until I reached the secluded place that held the Snowdrops. Plopping down in front of them, I brought my knees to my chest. First the sniffles came, and then the tears began streaming down my face.

"_I want to go home. I want Haru and Edmund here to make me laugh. I want my mom and dad here so they can tell me everything's alright. I want to go home and apologize to them. Tell them sorry that I got mad at them and yelled at them._"

There was a tap on my shoulder and I looked up into the blue eyes of Legolas.

"_Oh great. A so-called sissy is watching me cry._"

"Are you alright?"

I shook my head no. He was slowly peeving me off. "_Of course I'm fine,_" I thought, "_That's why I'm crying my eyes out!_"

He frowned and sat next to me. We were silent while I was sniffling and wiping away my tears. Cautiously he patted my head. I looked at him and he smiled slightly.

"I am not that practiced at making people feel better. My apologies."

A small giggle went through my body. I peeked up at him and smiled. Slowly reaching up my hand I patted his arm, trying to tell him it was okay. He returned the smile and then stood up. His hand reached out to me and he helped me up.

"I am going back to my room now. Goodnight Adela."

I nodded and watched him walk away. Then I suddenly remember the reason I was out here. Peeking past the bushes I saw a stick that was longer than the previous one I had. Grabbing it up quickly, I went to find the long way back to my room so I didn't run into anyone else.

* * *

**A/N: How are ya'll liking it so far? Next chapter is when they start their journey! And maybe a surprise. Depends on how far I get in the chapter and if I feel I've reached a good "This seems like a good ending to a chapter" point.**


	8. Meanwhile

**A/N: So this is just a small, kind of filler chapter. I'm working on chapter... 8 I think, of the real fic, but I thought you'd all like to know what's going on in "our" world with Ed and Haru. Also, I know I'm only naming like a couple of these chapters, but it's because I know what I want to call them . Sorry if that bugs you. Also, this chapter is dedicated to Saren-Dipety because she's awesome and is a huge motivator of mine. Thank you! Anyway, hope you enjoy**

* * *

-3rd Person POV-

The two boys were passed out on the blanket. Both of their arms were reached out as if trying to grab onto something. Slowly, the darker haired one stirred. He blinked his eyes, attempting to clear the black out.

"Ed," he said, turning to his companion. Calling his name again, he began to shake him.

Ed groaned, "What do you need Haru? You already know where the food is."

"That's not it. Wynter is gone."

Ed sat up slightly, "What do you mean gone."

Haru's irritability grew, "I mean she isn't here. At all. Her bag isn't even here."

"That can't be possible."

The boys stood and began to look around the clearing. She wasn't behind any of the mesquites or the cacti. They ran over to the car, but there was no outline was a female body. Even the dirt road that they took was free of any other tire tracks besides their own.

The brunette boy sat in front of one of the cars doors. His head banged loudly against the steel as he groaned out in frustration.

"Where the hell could she have gone," Haru asked out loud, sitting down next to his friend. They sat in silence, thinking.

"Haru, what do you remember before waking up?"

"I remember driving here and setting down the blanket. We were talking about Lord of the Rings and then… I don't remember."

"Damn it."

"What's wrong?"

"That's all I remember, too."

Both of the boys groaned again, their hopelessness filling them up. In the back of Edmund's mind he could see the conversation he would have with his parents. They would flip and probably ground him even though he was considered an adult by law. His mind immediately went to the worst possible scenario after that. The cops would show up and he'd probably be taken into custody. They would question him and then xx amount of time they would find his sister. Except she wouldn't be alive. She'd probably be dead.

"Stop doing that to yourself man," Haru said, interrupting the dark thoughts that were plaguing his best friend's mind.

"She's probably just out somewhere. She'll probably come back any minute."

And so the pair sat there and as the time grew on, the missing girl never showed up. They drifted to sleep and when the sun was shining, they woke up. Still there was no one there waiting for them. Haru sighed dejectedly, "Ed, I think we should head back. We got to tell your parents so they can call the cops."

Edmund nodded mutely and went to go inside the car. Haru stopped him and shook his head, "No. I'm not letting you drive. Give me your keys."

Sighing, the brunette tossed the keys over. They sat in silence during the drive. When they finally pulled into the driveway, Ed took a deep breath.

"Ready?"

"Yeah."

-Fast Forward-

Haru and Edmund sat next to each other on the couch. It was a little after noon and they were enjoying each other's company while watching The Devil's Backbone. They got to the middle of the movie when a knock on the door sounded.

"I'll get it," Ed said. He walked down the hall to reach the door and opened it.

"Hello, I'm Sarah. I'm looking for a girl named Wynter. Is she in?"

A sadness washed over Edmund at his sisters name. It's been almost four months since he last saw her. The police looked for her about a month before they gave up. They told them that they would have to consider the possibility of her being dead.

"No. She's been missing for about four months. Why?"

The woman's eyes saddened. She reached into her black purse and pulled out a picture of a small baby. The child's hair was a dark brown and she was sleeping.

"Because I'm her mother."

* * *

**A/N: Dun dun dunnn. Sort of, kinda cliff hanger I guess. I never thought I'd actually do one of those. Oh well. Review!**


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: To be honest, I didn't write as much as I wanted to for this chapter, but I feel like I stopped at a good stopping point. Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I love them so much and they make me smile and I feel like a school girl in love~... well the in love part. I am a school girl xP Anyway, Anything you recognize is not mine. It all belongs to the wonderful JRR Tolkien and Peter Jackson. And none of the braid stuff is true. Well it might be, but I really just made it up... On with the chapter!**

* * *

When Arwen woke me up the next morning it was grey outside. A bath was already drawn and the warm water almost put me back asleep. The cold air that hit my body as I got out, though, woke me up. Arwen handed me my clothes, "I had them washed for you after you went to bed. I hope you don't mind."

I shook my head and gave Arwen a hug after I changed into my clothing. She's treated me kindly ever since I got here and I was very thankful for that. I grabbed my backpack and looped my shoulders through the straps. Grabbing the bag that held my change of clothing, I threw it over my shoulder.

Arwen and I walked through the halls together. When we reached where everyone was gathering to say good-bye, she went to go stand by her people. I moved to stand off to the side near the Fellowship. To be honest, I didn't really feel like I belonged there. Which if you think about it, I didn't belong here. Boromir and Aragorn were standing next to each other. Soon Legolas came along and began talking to Aragorn after he put his bags on Bill. Then Gimli and Gandalf showed up, joining the conversation that Legolas started. Sam, Pippin, and Merry were one of the last ones to show up. The three of them gathered by me and began their own conversation, attempting to include me when they could.

The sky was lighter when Elrond appeared with Frodo. They appeared to be talking about something, but what, I didn't know. Frodo walked in between the group the Hobbits formed and the group with Gandalf in it. Lord Elrond faced us with Arwen at his side.

"The Ring-bearer is setting out on the Quest of Mount Doom. On you who travel with him, no oath nor bond is laid to go further that you will. Farewell. Hold to your purpose. May the blessing of Elves and Men and all Free Folk go with you."

"The Fellowship awaits the Ring-bearer," Gandalf replied.

Frodo lead our group away from the clearing. We reached a split in the road. Frodo looked between the two paths and whispered to Gandalf, "Mordor, Gandalf, is it left or right?"

"Left."

We followed our leaders down the path. A silence fell over our group, slowly taking in the fact that we were probably not going to have a bed to sleep in for a while. As the day dragged on, Gandalf began walking with me.

"Now Adela, I found a book that could help us. It has many spells meant to help return things that were once lost. The problem though, is that there are so many spells, I cannot find the one that would give you your voice back. Would you mind having to go over a few spells every break or so?"

I shook my head no. He nodded and walked to the front of the group, "We must hold to this course, west of the Misty Mountains, for forty days. If our luck holds, the Gap of Rohan will still be open to us. From there, our road turns east, to Mordor."

We kept traveling until the sun was high in the sky. Stopping, we took a quick lunch break and Gandalf tried a couple spells. None of them worked. Once we started walking again, the wind began and then it increased as we went on. It finally stopped when night fell, but my hair was already a tangled mess.

As Sam was cooking dinner, I took out my hair brush and began brushing out my rat's nest. I was half way done with brushing it out when Sam said dinner was ready. He handed me wooden plate that had bacon, some bread, and a slice of cheese on it. Quickly I ate the bacon and then I placed the cheese on the bread, eating them together. After I cleaned off the plate as best as I could, I gave it back to Sam.

Sitting by the small fire, I continued to brush out my hair. Aragorn and Legolas sat across from me while Gandalf was sitting in between the three of us, smoking his pipe. Legolas looked at me with a small smile on his face, "Your hair would be much easier to manage if you braided it."

I was about to sign to him "_What would you know? You're a guy!_", but then I noticed how long his hair was. Hurrying, I finished brushing my hair and separated it into three pieces. I put my hands behind my head and tried to braid it. Try being the key word. I would get a knot or two done and then I would forget which way to do it. After restarting trying to do my braid about five times, the elf laughed at me. Looking up I glared at him and pointed at him.

"_Fine. You do it then_," I thought.

Wordlessly he stood and walked to over to me. "Sit on the ground," he said gently. I did as I was told and he took my place on the log behind me. He took my hair brush and brushed my hair again. Then he separated my hair into three pieces and began to braid my hair.

"Aye, look at the elf. Partaking in female rituals," Gimli said loudly.

Gandalf looked over to the dwarf, "Master Dwarf, I do not think you should be teasing about such things, when you yourself have braids in your beard and hair."

"There's a difference. Our braids signify different things to us. They can show status, how many battles have been fought, how many wounds have been earned, how many people we have be-"

"I think that is enough now, Gimli," Aragorn cut in quickly. I was slightly confused at the statement.

"_Was he about to say bed_," I thought, moving my eyes to look at Gimli's beard. It had a few braids and if my wild guess of what 'bed' and 'people' meant in the same sentence was correct, I didn't want to think about it any longer. Legolas put my braid over my shoulder and I saw that at the end of my hair there was a leather band.

"Here you go Adela."

I turned to face the blonde. He smiled at me, "Yes?"

I pointed to my braid and bowed my head a little. Then I pointed to my braid and then to him.

"Do you wish to braid my hair?"

I shook my head no.

"You wish to know how I braided your hair?"

I shook my head again.

I heard Gandalf chuckling behind us, "She wishes to know how you know how to braid hair."

Legolas nodded his head and then looked at me. He pulled two small braids that were behind each ear over his shoulders. The hair was intricately woven and it almost looked… beautiful.

"These are warrior braids. The most common weapon practice among the elves is the art of the bow. The braids keep our hair from getting caught in the string when we use them. Depending on which region you go to, we use the intricacy of the braids to show rank in an army."

I nodded my head in understanding. Then a small, silent yawn caught me off guard.

"I think it's best now," started Gandalf, "To get some sleep. We will be up early tomorrow as well."

And that's how it went for the next month or so. During breaks and before bed, Gandalf would try some spells. None of them worked though. Then at night during dinner and before bed, we'd all sit by the fire and talk. Or at least the equivalent to talking on my part. Sometimes I would take out my dolls and tell them stories that I remembered from my world. A part of me thought that the rest of the journey would be like this. Peaceful, full of laughter and all of us being happy. Oh I was so wrong.

It was about noon and small was cooking over a small fire. Frodo was looking tired and weary, which was worrying Sam. Boromir was showing Pippin and Merry how to use the short swords that Aragorn gave them. A part of me was a little bit jealous because all I had was my big walking stick to protect myself. Gimli was talking to Gandalf about the route we were taking while Legolas was scouting. Personally, I don't really get how you scout by not even leaving our rocky clearing.

Gandalf escaped from Gimli's talkings and came over to me.

"Let us try a few spell before lunch, yes?"

I nodded and sat up straight while Gandalf held his hand out to me.

_"Is puella pro mihi lost suus vox vocis. Permissum mihi restituo is quod permissum suus r_e—oh."

Gandalf's attention was caught by a question Sam asked.

"Nothing. Just a wisp of a cloud," Gimli replied.

"It's moving fast… against the wind," Boromir said breathless from the wrestling match he had with the Hobbits and Aragorn.

Legolas's eyes widened, "Crebain from Dunland!"

"Hide," Aragorn shouted. Sam quickly put out the fire as I was pulled behind a rock with Legolas. He pressed his body against me, trying to hide me. Nervously, I looked up at his face. Sure I've flirted and kissed a guy or two before, but this was different. My heart was beating so fast and irregular that I thought I had two of them. I could feel his breath and I was wishing I could sink into the rock. His face was inches away from mine… and then he left. I held my breath and slowly let it out.

"_I'm not doing that again_," I thought, "_Never ever ever again. No way. I almost had a heart attack!_"

"Spies of Saruman. The passage south is being watched. We must take the Pass of Caradhras."

Gandalf pointed towards a tall mountain covered in snow. My mouth dropped open. I'm from Arizona. We don't get snow, and if we do it's melted by noon. I shook my head. This was going to be a long trip.

Before we left the rocky terrain, I was stopped by Gandalf.

"I know I got the previous spell wrong, but I would like you to try to speak. Sometimes when things go wrong, they actually go right."

I nodded, slightly confused. "_Well, it's worth a try I guess._"

Slowly I took a deep breath,"Hello?"

* * *

**A/N: She can talk now! Or can she... O.o I've learned from this chapter, I enjoy writing Gimli throwing insults at Legolas. It's fun. Anyway, after the next chapter, I was debating whether or not to do a Legolas POV. Would you guys read that? Let me know so I know how to plan things. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Review!**


	10. Chapter 9

**A/N: That really long sentence that has no spaces says "You are the most amazing person ever thank you ect."Also! I do not own J.R.R Tolkien's works, Peter Jackson's scripts, Pan's Labyrinth, or Sherlock. There was also a part down here that I wanted Adela to say, but if I had her say it, it would've been a total Mary-Sue thing to say, so someone else got the honors of saying it. It is now 1:30 A.M. so I'm heading to bed now. I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"Hello," my voice croaked out hoarsely. My eyes widened in shock.

"I-I can talk. I can speak. My mouth is moving, and sound is coming out!"

I jumped, throwing my fist in the air. Happily I danced around in circles and then ran to give Gandalf a hug.

"Youarethemostamazingpersoneverthankyouthankyoutha nkyouthankyou!"

Gandalf laughed and patted my back. The rest of the Fellowship came back.

"Why is Adie hugging Gandalf," Pippin asked.

Quickly I let go of Gandalf and I squatted down in front of Pippin. Motioning his head forward, I leaned over and whispered in his ear.

"Because Gandalf is a wonderful person who deserves to be hugged."

Pippin nodded and said 'oh'. Then he looked back at me. His eyes were wide with excitement, "You can speak! Merry! Sam! Frodo! Adela is speaking! She's really speaking!"

Everyone turned to me. I smiled sheepishly and waved a little bit.

"Hello."

Aragorn's eyebrows shot up to his hairline, "Well, I guess you won't be as hard to understand now."

I shrugged, "Who knows."

We continued to go to the mountain. The air quickly got colder and the wind blew harsher. Bundled up in a coat that Arwen packed me, I ran to catch up with Legolas.

"I just wanted to say thank you for the braid."

He looked at me from the corner of his eyes. "You're welcome," he said and then walked off. I frowned. Something was up. I didn't know what though. For the first month he was telling me stories about the elves. All about their history and legends and then after the incident with the Dunland… crows, yeah I like that, Dunland crows, he's barely spoken a word to me.

We continued up the mountain. The snow came up to my ankles and it was freezing. I was walking in the back with Aragorn when Frodo fell. He tumbled down the mountain heels over head while Aragorn helped block his path so he would stop. We helped Frodo up as he started panicking. He felt all around his person and then looked at Boromir.

Boromir was standing a few steps in front of us holding the ring by its chain. His eyes were fixated on it and he seemed to tremble slightly.

"Boromir," Aragorn called out.

Absent mindedly Boromir said, "It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing… such a little thing…"

Aragorn grabbed his sword, keeping it in his sheath. Boromir's gaze was still fixed upon the ring.

"Boromir, give the Ring to Frodo," Aragorn said quietly so attention wouldn't be drawn to the scene.

Boromir snapped out of his daze. He looked at Aragorn and then to Frodo. "As you wish. I care not," he said, smiling a little bit a messing with Frodo's hair. I snuck a glance at Frodo and he seemed worried and a little bit scared. We continued trekking through the snow until a storm started. Quickly we found a cave to hide out it.

Sam and Aragorn eventually made a fire with the very little wood we could find in the mountain. The wind was blowing hard and we had to move the fire to the very back to make sure it didn't go out. I huddled into the corner of the cave, close by the fire. My body was still shivering and I pulled my jacket tighter towards myself. Merry and Pippin were sitting across from me, talking excitedly about… something. I didn't exactly catch what. Sam was sitting close to them with Frodo, talking about the Shire and how they never got blizzards there. Gimli was sitting close to the opening of the cave muttering about how we couldn't handle a bit of cold weather. Legolas was leaning against the cave wall, looking out of the cave into the snow while Boromir was sitting next to him. Aragorn was across from the two of them looking at something in his hand. I heard a rustling next to me and saw Gandalf sitting by me.

"Even with your voice back, you do not seem to talk much. Is this a habit of your's?"

I nodded my head, "It feels nice just to think."

Carefully, I choose my next words, "I feel as if I've been surrounded by noise and so many things have been going by so fast, I couldn't take the time to process it all.

"I like being able to think about what I can remember. It's like going through my own inner… mind palace," I said with a small smile on my face, thinking of one of my favorite shows, "I feel like I can take a path back to my forgotten memories stowed deep inside."

Gandalf nodded, understand my choice of words and hopefully, what I really meant. We sat in silence as a sad feeling filled me. Looking around the cave it felt as if we all didn't really know each other, even though we've been traveling together for almost two months.

Talking louder than normal I said, "What are your homes like?"

The Hobbits didn't hear me. The others did though. The rest of them except Gandalf looked towards me. They stared for several minutes and I hugged my knees closer to my chest to make myself seem smaller. "N-Nevermind, then…"

The next morning we continued our climb, the blizzard plaguing us the night before was still going though. The snow came up to my hips and the Hobbits had to be carried. All four of them were shivering. Quickening my speed, I went up to Boromir and Aragorn. They were holding the Hobbits and cautiously I smiled at them.

"There is a trick I remember doing when I got cold," I started saying.

"Wh-Wh-What is it A-A-A-A-Adie," Merry said, having to stop on my name a couple times because his teeth were chattering so much.

"Close your eyes," and they did, "Now imagine that you are at home. Picture your fire place roaring and heating up the room. See yourself curled up in a chair, doing your favorite thing and drinking something warm. The warmth of your drink sinks deep inside your core and warms your entire being. It fills you up and spreads down to your toes and all the way through the tips of your hair."

"I-It's working-g a little b-bit," Pippin said.

"Thank you A-Adie," Frodo said smiling. I smiled back and continued up. That was when I noticed Legolas practically prancing on top of the snow.

"_What the actual fudge_," I thought, "_How dare he not share this spectacular power with us? We could be warmer! And dryer!_"

He stopped a little bit up ahead. His head quickly whipped around, "There is a fell voice in the air!"

"It is Saruman," Gandalf shouted over the storm. The mountain began to shake and some snow began to fall from the cliff above us. I fell to my knees and stared up at the mountain.

"He's trying to bring down the mountain. Gandalf! We must turn back now!"

"No!"

Gandalf began to chant. The snowed filled mountain continued to shake and Gandalf grew louder. Suddenly a loud crack sounded as lightning struck the cliff. The snow fell and everything became cold. I punched at the snow, but it wasn't budging. Soon I began kicking at it, too, trying to get out. Pulling my foot back on last time, I kicked through the snow… and hit something.

Getting out and breathing heavily I looked around. I saw Aragorn holding his cheek. Sheepishly I smiled. Aragorn glared at me slightly, "This is why you got the stick."

I pouted at that, "I didn't mean to kick you in the face. _You_ were just at the wrong place at the wrong time."

Aragorn sighed, "Now is not the time to be bickering. We need to get off the mountain."

Boromir called out to Gandalf, "We must get off the mountain! Make for the Gap of Rohan and take the West road to my city!"

"_Gap of Rohan_," I thought, "_Maybe we could get better, not wet, warmer clothes._"

"The Gap of Rohan takes us too close to Isengard," Aragorn shouted, crushing my hopes for warm clothes.

"We cannot pass over the mountain," Gimli started, "Let us go under it. Let us go through the Mines of Moria."

Gandalf looked between us all, his face looking like he was being torn in different directions. He looked towards Frodo, "Let the Ring-bearer decide."

"_Seriously_," I thought, "_You ask someone else to make the decision? Can't you see we all look to you as a leader?_"

"_Of course_," my inner-voice said, "_But sometimes it's hard to live up to the expectations we set for him._"

"_Still, it's not very nice to Frodo._"

"Frodo," Gandalf said, snapping me out of my inner-rage debate.

"We will go through the mines."

Gandalf slowly nodded. Sighing softly he replied, "So be it."

It took us half the time to get down the mountain than it did to get up the mountain. It seemed the mountain wanted us to get off of it as fast as possible. We continued walking towards Moria. Eventually some fog came over us and it was harder to see. A few hours later, Gandalf called Frodo over to help him walk. Picking up my speed, I went to walk with Pippin and Merry.

"Hello Adie," Merry said.

"Hi."

"Have you remembered anything else so far," Pippin asked.

I thought for a moment, pretending that I was thinking about it, "I… remember being told a fairytale one time."

"How did it go?"

Smiling slightly, I thought back to one of my favorite movies, Pan's Labyrinth. "I think it went, 'A long, long time ago in a sad, faraway land, there was an enormous mountain made of rough, black stone. At sunset, on top of that mountain, a magic rose blossomed every night that made whoever plucked it immortal. But no one dared go near it because its thorns were full of poison. Men talked amongst themselves about their fear of death and pain, but never about the promise of eternal life. And every day, the rose wilted, unable to bequeath its gift to anyone... forgotten and lost at the top of that cold, dark mountain, forever alone, until the end of time.'"

"It seems sad for a fairytale," Merry remarked.

"Not all fairytales are meant to be happy. Some are meant to teach us. For example the one Adela just told you. We all fear death and it keeps us from doing the things we wish to do, but if we took a chance our lives could possibly be immortalized," Gandalf said, from behind us.

We reached the top of the hill we were climbing and Gimli breathlessly said, "The Walls of Moria!"

We hurried down the hill, mindful of our steps down the steep slope. Gimli and Gandalf went to the rocks and began tapping on them, listening. "Dwarf doors are invisible when closed," Gimli said, prideful of his kin's craftsmanship.

"Yes, Gimli, their own masters cannot find them if their secrets are forgotten."

"Why doesn't that surprise me," Legolas commented smugly. I sat on a rock and started staring at him.

"_That was such a Yuki Sohma thing to say to Kyou_," I thought, laughing a little bit. Gimli glared over at me, and I began busying myself with a loose string on my shirt. A couple minutes passed, and then Gandalf found the door.

"Isildin… It mirrors only starlight and moonlight."

Suddenly the clouds cleared and the fog dissipated. "_Well that was shockingly convenient_," I thought to myself.

"It reads, 'The Door of Durin,' Gandalf started again, "'Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter.'"

"What does that mean," Merry asked.

"It's simple. If you are a friend, you speak the password and the doors will open."

Gandalf tried a couple spells. They both failed and his confidence soon grew cold.

"Nothing's happening," Pippin said casually.

"I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves, Men, and Orcs."

"What are you going to do then?"

"Knock your head against these doors, Peregrin Took! And if that does not shatter them, and I am allowed a little peace from foolish questions, I will try to find the opening words."

My eyes narrowed at Gandalf. "_It was a freaking innocent question_," I thought, "_He meant no harm in it._"

We all went our separate ways then. Aragorn helped Sam un-pack Bill and let him go off back home. I leaned back on the rock and shut my eyes, enjoying the feeling of being able to rest and be warm. My mind drifted back to my parents confessing I was adopted.

I was looking through the bookshelf we had in the family room. A frown was on my face because I already read all the books there and I felt like reading something new. Ed, Haru, and I were going to see the meteor shower later tonight and I wanted something to pass the time with. I went up stairs to my parents' bedroom and looked through their bookshelves. There was a small brown leather book and I tugged it out. An envelope fell out and I picked it up looking at both sides. It was addressed to my parents.

Being a little bit nosy, I decided to open the letter. There was a flowy cursive script running across the paper. Leaning against the small shelf, I began reading:

_ Mr. and Mrs. Rose,_

_ You have been officially approved for your adoption. Wynter is now in your care. Please come to pick her up at your earliest convenience._

_ Sincerely,_

_ Ms. Harper_

"What," I said softly. Quickly I re-read the impossibly short letter.

"I-I'm adopted," I said confused. I heard my parents' door open and I looked up. My mom was standing there. She saw me and she smiled.

"Wynter, here you are. What are you do-," her sentence cut off when she saw what I was holding.

"Where did you find that?"

"I found it in here," I said, picking up the leather book, "I was looking for a book and it fell out."

We stood in an awkward silence for a couple minutes. Then I looked up at my mom, "Were you ever going to tell me?"

"Your father and I didn't plan on it."

I frowned, tears starting to gather at my eyes, "Why?"

She sighed, "We wanted you to live a normal life. We thought that if you knew you were adopted, you would never feel like you belong here. All your father and I wanted was for you to be happy."

"But you were never going to tell me about my biological mom."

"It was probably going to be brought up eventually, but we didn't want you to be questioning everything."

"But you never planned on telling me."

Mom nodded slightly.

The tears fell, "Why? Sh-Shouldn't I want to meet the woman who gave birth to me? Wouldn't I like to know about her, or at least know she existed? Isn't it un-fair that you decide to withhold that information from me? Were you afraid I'd leave you if I knew? Are you still afraid I'll leave you?"

She stayed silent looking at the carpet. It became harder to breathe, "Y-You raised me. How c-could you have s-so little trust in me as to th-think I'd leave you?"

Quickly I ran out of the room and locked the door. I cried and cried until Haru picked us up. "_And then I came here_," I thought sadly.

I got where they were coming from, now that I had had a lot of time to cool off. What adopted kid wouldn't want to go out at find their biological parents? See why they gave them up. I know that they wanted me and didn't want me to keep lingering on those thoughts every day. 'Does my mom think about me?' 'Why did she give me up?' 'Is she already dead?'

Opening my eyes I saw Legolas standing over me. My eyes shot up and I sat up.

"Wh-what is it?"

He turned away and went to go scout. "_Seriously_," I thought, "_You stare at me for who knows how long and you leave. I'm starting to seriously question my judgment on people._"

Pippin and Merry began throwing rocks at the dark, murky water. Aragorn's eyes began to panic as he reached the two Hobbits. Quickly he grabbed Pippin's arm before he could throw another rock.

"Do not disturb the water."

He exchanged a look with Boromir and grabbed onto the hilt of his sword. Gandalf huffed out in defeat. Frodo sat on a rock staring up at the door. His face suddenly held a look of understand and happiness.

"It's a riddle! Speak 'friend' and enter. Gandalf, what's the Elvish word for friend?"

"Mellon."

The doors began to open. I got up and ran to Frodo hugging him. "I guess it's true what they say about punctuation changing everything," I said nonchalantly.

Legolas and Gimli walked side by side, the dwarf going on about the mines.

"Soon, Master Elf, you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the Dwarves; roaring fires, malt beer, red meat off the bone! This, my friend, is the home of my cousin Balin ... And they call this a mine. A mine!"

"This is no mine," Boromir began to speak grimly; "It is a tomb!"

Gimli cried out in horror, running over to the skeletons of his kind. My mouth opened in horror as I quickly covered it with my hand. I watched Legolas kneel down and grab an arrow from one of the corpses.

"Goblins," he spat out.

They all drew out their weapons as I held my stick close to myself. We all began to back away slowly towards the opening. "We make for the Gap of Rohan," Boromir said, "We should have never come here."

I heard someone cry out behind us. Turning around, I saw Frodo being dragged away by a giant… tentacle? Aragorn and Boromir rushed forward to help him. They began hacking at the tentacle as several more came out. Finally, Aragorn severed an arm while Boromir caught Frodo.

"Into the mines!"

"Legolas," Aragorn cried. Legolas drew his bow and notched an arrow. Holding it back and aiming, he let go of the string. He set off three more arrows until he came into the mines. Legolas barely made it to us when the doors collapsed and we were trapped.

Darkness covered us and Gandalf lit his staff so we could see into the darkness. The light made the place appear scarier than it did before.

"Now we have but one choice. We must face the long dark of Moria. Be on your guard ... there are older and fouler things than the Orcs in the deep places of the world."

We began trekking through the path that the bodies surrounded. From right in front of me I heard Boromir sigh. "Could things possibly get any worse," he said.

"Yes," I replied without thinking.

He looked back towards me, "Would you care to elaborate little miss?"

I nodded, "Let's just say hypothetically that we had a heavily pregnant woman traveling with us. Surely she wouldn't be able to handle the stress of what just happened without going into labor. So with that, we'd need someone to help her give birth, but for worst case scenario's sake let's say that the door collapsing told whatever is in here that we are here. Then we'd have to fight and also help her give birth. My guess is that Gandalf would most likely be the "midwife" I guess. You'd be down one wizard then. Merry and Pippin only know the basics of sword fighting, so realistically, they wouldn't be much use. Frodo and Sam don't even know how to use a weapon, so out of the ten of us you are already down by half your people. I can't do anything except fight with a stick, which isn't going to kill anyone, so now out of ten, you only have four who are able to fight. With those odds, I do believe we all would be dead before we could see the Ring to Mordor. The fact that you can't think of a worse scenario is either because it is worse case or you lack the imagination to come up with one."

Boromir, Aragorn, and Legolas looked at me in shock. I started to get embarrassed and I looked down at the floor, "Wh-What is it? Why are you guys looking at me like that?"

"It's just," Aragorn started, pausing slightly, "I believe that is the most you have spoken and what came out is… quite a shock."

"O-Oh…"

We continued walking and once all of us were tired, we settled down for some rest. I laid down my bed roll and curled up into a ball. Lying there, I willed for sleep to come.

**~Legolas POV~**

I just don't understand. I don't understand her, or what she thinks. I don't understand the way that I act towards her. When I first saw her at the council, I thought she was too young. Too young to be dealing with matters such as war. When she was mistaken to be aged six winters, my heart almost stopped. When she explained that she was fifteen, though, I grew sad. She is a young girl whose only worries should be about the clothing she wears and the butcher's son who she fancies. Well, I don't know if she fancies anyone, but war and death should not be a part of a childhood.

Once she joined the Fellowship, it was like she was lost. She didn't understand anything and she couldn't even speak. For the love of Valar, she couldn't even braid her own hair. She was so much like a child… I mean she is a child.

During the first night on our journey when I helped her braid her hair, I felt like I had to protect this innocent girl. I felt as if it was my duty to be… a protective older sibling, I guess. The day after that, I began walking with her, talking about the history and legends of my kin. Even though she couldn't speak, she was an avid listener, never once losing interest. During the night before we slept, she would tell us stories through dolls, only furthering my belief that she was a child who needed protecting. It all changed though.

When I first spotted the Crebain, my first thoughts flew to Adela. I rushed over and made sure she was safe, even hiding her with my body, putting myself at a greater risk to be seen. Then I looked down. I saw her green eyes pierce through me and my breath caught in my throat.

She no longer seemed like a child who needed protection. She seemed to have transformed into a woman. There was a nagging thought in my head as I quickly left her presence when all was clear.

"She is far too young," the thought cried, "You have much more experience with the world. She is young, she has yet to feel love or sorrow or pure happiness. You cannot take those experiences away from her."

Then she began to speak. The things that left her mouth baffled me. There were times she could seem so mature and thoughtful, but then that side of her would quickly hide. Then she would say the most innocent things and she'd get nervous. It seemed as if she wasn't comfortable with us. She would try to ask questions, but then we would just look at her, still adjusting to the fact that she could talk. We do not help her by sitting or standing, not even replying to her questions, but she doesn't give us the chance. She takes back the question or she pulls back into herself before we get the chance to recover and reply.

Even so, it seems she is curious about us. She wants to know more and talk with us. The only evidence I have of this assumption, though, is because she continues to try to talk to me even though I avoid her. But then again I avoid her because I do not understand her or myself. Leaning back against one of the rocks, I closed my eyes, finally stopping myself from looking at her.

"It is still just as I said," the thought began nagging at me again, "You cannot take away those experiences. For her and for your immortal self."

* * *

**A/N: So this may be the first and last extremely long chapter you get. Depends on how summer looks. How'd you like my worst case scenario? I enjoy thinking those up. And how do you guys feel about finding out what happened when she found out she was adopted? I hope that wasn't too bad...To be honest, I'm shocked I even wrote this much, but I wanted to put Legolas's POV in here. He is kind of hard to write in because I feel so... corny. Also, I picture him just studying and observing everyone's behavior trying to learn more about the world, so I can see him questioning himself a lot and thinking in weird ways. I hope you enjoyed it! Review!**


	11. Chapter 10

**A/N: MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE HOBBIT! IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE BOOK OR ACCIDENTALLY STUMBLED UPON SPOILERS FOR THE ENDING, YOU MAY NOT WANT TO READ. Also, I am not an action writer. Fight scenes are not my cups of tea, but I tried my best. Enjoy!**

_This means she is thinking_

_**This means**** Elvish**_

* * *

The next time we woke up, Gandalf told us that we would be traveling for about four days trough the mines. We continued through the mines. At one point, we were walking on a narrow path. A silver looking substance ran through the rocks around us like rivers. There were ladders leading up the sides and Gandalf lightly touched one of the silver rivers.

"The wealth of Moria was not in gold or jewels but mithril. Bilbo had a shirt of mithril rings that Thorin gave him."

"That was a very kingly gift," Gimli stated.

"Yes. I never told him, but its worth was greater than the value of the Shire."

Frodo's eyes widen at that. I smiled and placed my hand on his shoulder, shaking my head. Then I grew a little but curious.

"Gimli, did you know Thorin?"

"Aye, I did. My father and uncle was in the company he lead to take back Erebor. I would have come too, but they said I was too young, even though Fili and Kili got to go."

I smiled slightly, "How much older were they?"

"About twenty years older than me. That isn't a whole lot for us dwarves, but my father seemed to think so. It probably helped that they were Thorin's nephews though."

"Were you friends with them? Fili and Kili I mean."

He nodded his head, smiling, "Aye, that I was lass. Those two were as thick as thieves and extremely loyal to their uncle and friends. It is a shame that they both perished in the Battle of Five Armies."

I felt a wave of sadness wash over me, "They died?"

Gimli started frowning slightly, "Yes, along with their uncle. All three of them fought and died honorably, though. It is the most any dwarf could ask of."

I nodded and we continued down our path. About two days later we came across a steep set of stairs. We climbed them, the Hobbits and me occasionally slipping, only to be caught by someone. When we reached the top, seven horrible words left Gandalf's mouth.

"I have no memory of this place."

We all began to sit down, resting while Gandalf looked at the three tunnels we had to decide between. Boromir, Aragorn, and Legolas all sat near the second flight of steps down. It seemed like they formed their own group during these two months we've been here. I sat up on the first flight down, enjoying the cool rock against my skin. Aragorn began smoking on his pipe and he looked over at me.

"Do you like fairytales?"

"Wh-What," I asked slightly confused.

"Do you enjoy fairytales?"

"I guess. Why?"

"Every time you tell us a story, they always seem to be fairytales. Is there any particular reason why you like them?"

"I… I like the fact that you can learn from them. They highlight a trait that every living being has and shows how it can corrupt or what good it can do. The stories can be so simple yet express so much. That's what I like about them."

Aragorn nodded. Boromir then looked towards me, "You know, there are times when you act very mature and then other times where you seem very childish. It seems as if you don't know how you want to act, so you act in different ways to see which way you like the most."

"R-Really? I just act the way I act. My brother found it endearing at sometimes."

His eyebrows shot up, "Your brother?"

I nodded. "I remembered him a day or two ago, although that was all I could remember," I replied, covering my slip up.

"Then we have something in common. I also have a brother."

"What is his name?"

"His name is Faramir. He is a very intelligent person. He is not much of a warrior, but he has great strategizing skills. Usually when he first meets people, he is somewhat shy, but he quickly warms up to them. I have looked after him since we were younger, after out mother died. Our father has shunned him though. It makes me sick how he can openly show affection for one of us and not the other."

I stayed silent for a minute or two, letting his words sink in. Slowly I said, "Well, I believe that he has an excellent older brother who obviously cares for him very much."

Boromir turned to me and smiled. I smiled back, enjoying the fact that I was learning more about them and that they were trying to learn more about me. It felt lonely not really talking to anyone except Gandalf and the Hobbits. Especially since the Hobbits were their own little group, laughing and chatting in happiness. Also the fact that more often than not they reminded me of Edmund and Haru.

Suddenly Gandalf called out, "Ah! It's that way."

"He's remembered," Merry said happily.

"No. But the air doesn't smell so foul down here. If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose!"

The Fellowship started down the stairs, but before I stepped on the first step, Gandalf grabbed my arm. He smiled softly, speaking so quiet I could barely hear him, "Child, I know you wish to bond with the others, but you must be careful. It is not wise to let too much knowledge of where you are from to be let into light. We do not know what forces sent you here and I would not try and test our luck."

I nodded, beginning to feel sad. I wanted to get along and bond with these people. I wanted to stop feeling alone in this world, but I also knew that no matter what, I couldn't be honest with them. We continued down the stairs, quickly catching up to the others. Several minutes later we reached the end of the steps.

"Let me risk a little more light," Gandalf said, waving a hand over his staff.

"Behold the great realm and Dwarf-city of Dwarrowdelf."

There were insanely tall pillars reaching up. They created a space that felt as if it went on forever and ever. "Now that's an eye opener and no mistake," Sam said breathlessly.

Gimli suddenly ran over to a door, quickly running inside. He was yelling out and we quickly followed him. His cries could be heard from inside the room as we found him on his knees in front of a tomb. Gandalf walked over to the tomb, handing his stuff to Pippin. Wiping off the dust that covered the tomb he read, "'Here lies Balin, son of Fundin, Lord of Moria.' He is dead, then. It's as I feared."

Gandalf spotted a book that was by the tomb and he picked it up. Turning to the last page with writing on it, he continued reading.

"They have taken the Bridge and the second hall. We have barred the gates, but cannot hold them for long ... the ground shakes ... drums… drums in the deep ... we cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark. Will no-one save us? They are coming."

My heart fell as I heard what Gandalf read. Whoever wrote this was scared… very scared. Suddenly a loud noise started, breaking the thick tension in the room. My eyes went over to Pippin who was wincing every-time the noise kept repeating. Fear grew in me; fear that if Gandalf was right about other things being in here, we just told them where we were. The sound kept going for what seemed like forever. Finally it stopped and the silence stayed for a moment longer until Gandalf turned to Pippin.

"Fool of a Took! Throw yourself in next time, and rid us of your stupidity!"

Then came the 'booms'. They started out soft and steadily increased in volume. Aragorn and Legolas exchanged glances. Then we all heard Sam's worry filled voice call out, "Mr. Frodo… Look!"

"Orcs," Legolas said once he caught sight of Frodo's sword. Frodo's glowing sword.

_"Hey, where can I get one of those?"_

Aragorn grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the Hobbits. "Get back. Stay close to Gandalf."

We nodded and did as he said. Boromir rushed to the doors we came through and poked his head out. Two arrows were shot, just barely missing his head. His head quickly pulled back as he finished shutting the door. With a stressed out look on his face, he said, "They have a Cave Troll."

Quickly everyone except the Hobbits and me took weapons and used them to blockade the doors. Rushing back, they pulled out their weapons and prepared for battle. Gimli jumped onto the tomb of Balin.

"Let them come. There is still one Dwarf yet in Moria who still draws breath!"

The doors shattered as a large group of goblins and a giant ugly troll burst into the room. Gimli immediately dived into the battle, embedding his axe in two goblin heads. Boromir and Aragorn worked side by side, cutting down goblins left and right. Legolas jumped in front of me and the Hobbits, aiming at goblins, releasing his arrows with deadly accuracy. The goblins found a way around him though. They chased us until we were separated. I saw Sam being forced back against a wall, holding the sword from Aragorn in one hand and a pan in the other. Quickly, he swung the pan forward, catching the goblin in the gut. Looking at him in surprise, he then hit another oncoming goblin. That was when I noticed I was being forced into a corner with about four goblins in front of me.

Sending a silent prayer to whoever watched over this place, I hit one of them up-side the head with my stick. His body fell to the ground, unconscious. Looking up at the other three, I quickly did what I did before. I knocked out two more before the last one got smart. He used his sword and cut my stick in half.

I looked down at the two severed pieces in my hands. Gripping them tightly, I used the severed ends and threw one at him. It hit his eye and he kneeled over. With a happy smile on my face, I kicked him where the sun didn't shine. He toppled over and I jumped on his back.

"That's what you get for breaking my stick you jerk."

I then heard Frodo yelling for Aragorn. He was being lifted up by a spear that the troll was using. The troll then brutally smashed Frodo against the wall.

"Frodo," I yelled out. Sam, Merry, and Pippin began attacking the beast. While trying to get one of them, his chain wrapped around a pillar. Legolas climbed up the chain and stood at the Cave Troll's head. He shot an arrow right through his head and he casually jumped off of the lifeless body. We all rushed over to Frodo. He didn't seem to be breathing.

"Oh no," I said, tear pricking at my eyes.

He then began to cough harshly, taking in deep breathes when he was done. Looking over at us, he smiled weakly. "He's alive," Sam said, some tears escaping his eyes.

"I'm alright. I'm not hurt."

"You should be dead. That spear would have skewered a wild boar," Aragorn said, disbelief covering his face.

Gandalf smiled knowingly, "I think there's more to this Hobbit than meets the eye."

Like a child caught with his hand in a cookie jar, Frodo opened his shirt. There was mail covering it, looking like silver. Gimli laughed behind us, "Mithril! You are full of surprises, Master Baggins."

The drums started up again and Gandalf turned serious, "To the bridge of Khazad-Dûm!"

Gandalf lead us through the dwarf city. Goblins were behind us, shooting arrows and gaining on us. We kept running until we saw that there was a group of goblins in front of us, running towards us. We tried turning down the other two directions, but there were goblins there, too. We were trapped.

From behind the goblins a bright fire appeared. A roar sounded and the goblins froze, not advancing any closer to us. Then all at once they ran away. "What is this new delivery," Boromir questioned.

Gandalf looked terrified, "A Balrog ... a demon of the ancient world! This foe is beyond any of you! Run! Quickly!"

We ran down the halls again. My lungs began to hurt and tears were forming at my eyes. I tripped and fell, having a difficult time pulling myself up. Aragorn came back and grabbed my hand.

"I know you are tired Adela, but we must hurry. Once we are safe, you can rest, but right now please keep running."

We reached a set of broken steps which Boromir almost fell off of before Legolas saved him. Turning to the right, we continued down the mostly complete set of stairs. There was a huge gap in the second flight, though.

Legolas gracefully jumped across and Gandalf followed. Sam jumped right after them, continuing down the set of stairs to make room for the rest of us. Boromir grabbed onto Pippin and Merry, jumping across the chasm and making it larger. Aragorn was about to pick up Gimli and throw him, but the dwarf's pride kicked in.

"Nobody tosses a dwarf!"

He jumped across, almost falling until Legolas grabbed his beard and pulled him up. Aragorn then turned towards me. "Adela, I know the jump is big, but I need you to trust me and Legolas. All I'm going to do is throw you and I promise you Legolas will catch you."

I nodded, scared about what was going to happen. Gripping my waist, Aragorn threw me. I felt like I was free-falling for several seconds and then my stomach dropped out. I think Aragorn was much more tired than he let on because his throw wasn't enough to get me over. I began falling, a loud scream escaping my mouth. "I don't want to die," I thought closing my eyes tightly, waiting for pain.

To my surprise, I felt someone grab my wrist, hurting my shoulder slightly. I looked up to see Legolas gripping me tightly.

"Don't worry Adela, I have you."

He pulled me up and I gripped his form tightly. I was terrified. I was literally about to die. Boromir pulled me back towards him. Aragorn and Frodo were about to jump when the gap increased. Then goblins began shooting at us. The stone stairs that the Ranger and the Hobbit were on began tipping. They tipped back for a couple seconds before the adjusted their weight and began moving forward. Legolas and Boromir caught them and we continued our way to the bridge. Noticing that I was still lagging behind, Aragorn grabbed my hand again and helped pull me forward. Noticing that Gandalf was leaning heavily on his staff, Aragorn stopped to face him.

"Lead the on, Aragorn! The bridge is near." Aragorn hesitated and gripped my hand harder.

"Do as I say; Swords are no use here anymore. Over the bridge. Fly!"

Aragorn, Frodo, and I ran across the narrow bridge. We reached the end and looked back to see Gandalf stopping in the middle. He had his sword raised in one hand and his staff in the other. In front of him was a creature that looked a lot like Diablo from Diablo III. My heart leapt to my throat as I saw the only person who knew where I was from face life and death.

"Gandalf!"

Gandalf held his weapons up high. We heard him yelling from our places.

"I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udûn."

The Balrog took a step onto the bridge.

"Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass."

The fire demon took out a whip, cracking it several times. He stood to his full height and went further onto the bridge. The flame around him grew and the entire room was lite.

"YOU _SHALL_ NOT PASS!"

Aragorn and Boromir took up their swords. They began running towards the bridge when Gandalf struck the stone beneath him with his staff. The rock gave out and the Balrog fell. Gandalf began walking towards us, but then something fiery wrapped around his leg. His feet were pulled out from under him and he gripped at the bridge.

Frodo screamed out his name as Gandalf looked at us with fear in his eyes.

"Fly, you fools!"

And then he was gone. More arrows were being fired at us and Frodo was screaming, trying his best to run to his mentor. Everything seemed to be in slow motion though. I felt someone grab my hand and pull me. We finally reached the opening and there was a grassy field covered in sunlight.

It all seemed so bleak though. The Hobbits fell to the ground, shaking and crying. I felt myself being lowered onto a rock as the person who held my hand let go.

"Legolas," Aragorn said, "get them up."

"Give them a moment for pity's sake!"

"By nightfall these hills will be swarming with Orcs! We must reach the woods of Lothlórien. Come Boromir, Legolas, Gimli, get them up," He continued kneeling by Sam, "On your feet, Sam"

I felt myself being pulled up again and we began walking. We walked and walked and walked for what seemed like an eternity, but what also seemed like a few seconds. The scenery changed from the hill to tall trees. We were all silent and the warm hand that once held mine let go long ago. Legolas was the first one to break the silence.

"Ah, Lothlórien. The fairest of all the dwellings of my people. There are no trees like the trees of this land, for in autumn the leaves fall not, but turn to gold. Not till the spring comes and the new green opens do they fall, and then the boughs are laden with yellow flowers; and the floor of the wood is golden, and golden is the roof, and its pillars are of silver, for the bark of the trees is smooth and grey. So still our songs in Mirkwood say."

Gimli scoffed at Legolas. Staying close to the Hobbits, he told them to stay close, "They say a great sorceress lives in these woods. An Elf-witch of terrible power. All who look upon her fall under her spell and are never seen again. Well here's one Dwarf she won't ensnare so easily. I have the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox!"

Then we were surrounded by a group of elves. They all had their bows drawn and aimed at us. "_More like eyes of a bat_," I thought, slightly peeved.

The leader of the group came forward. He had a smug smile on his face and held no bow.

"The Dwarf breathes so loud we could have shot him in the dark."

He turned to face Legolas, "_**Mae govannen, Legolas Thranduilion.**_"

Legolas bowed slightly before him, "_**Govannas vîn gwennen le, Haldir o Lórien.**_"

The elf glanced over to Aragorn, his eyebrows rising a little. "_**A, Aragorn in Dúnedain istannen le ammen.**_"

"Haldir," Aragorn replied.

"_Not with this language we can't understand again_," I thought, my temper almost reaching its breaking point. Gimli seemed to share my thoughts because he then said, "So much for the legendary courtesy of the Elves! Speak words we can also understand!"

Haldir looked at Gimli with a sort of disgust in his eyes, "We have not had dealings with the Dwarves since the Dark Days."

"And you know what this Dwarf says to that? Ishkhaqwi ai durugnul!"

Aragorn grabbed on to Gimli's arm, holding him back. Looking at him sternly like a mother would at a child he said, "That was not so courteous."

Haldir then walked into our group more. His eyes landed on Frodo and he let in a sharp breath. "You carry great evil with you. You cannot go any farther."

I snapped, "Why? Because the giant stick shoved up your ass won't let you?"

Aragorn's head whipped towards me and he grabbed my arm, "That was not so polite either."

I torn my arm from his grip, "Well, I apologize for not being in a polite mood. I almost died back there and Gandalf actually did. I've been terrified through-out this whole thing and I'm getting tired of the fact that our so called 'good-guys' are acting like giant douche bags all of the time. I don't belong here! I'm scared and confused and lonely and I just want to go home!"

I sat by under a tree bringing my knees up to my chest. My body began to shake and every lonely, scared, uncomfortable, and sad emotion that I held escaped through my tears. I bit my lip so none of my sobs sounded, but I already figured he others knew I was crying. All I wanted to do was be home. I wanted to have Haru spend the night and then all of us camp out in the living room watching badly dubbed foreign action films. I wanted Ed to hug me and tell me everything was alright while Haru tried to cheer me up with lame jokes. I wished I never came here.

I felt someone in front of me. Slowly I looked up and I saw Boromir kneeling. He held a small smile on his face and he moved to sit next to me. Cautiously he placed an arm around my shoulder and began to rub my arm.

"You know when you cry your face becomes puffy and red. It is not an attractive look on a young woman such as yourself."

I laughed a little bit, "Crying isn't supposed to be pretty."

"Then you shouldn't do it. You should smile instead."

I turned my head so it was resting on my knees and I could see Boromir. He had a bigger smile plastered on his face as he looked at me.

"I bet you say that to every damsel in distress."

Boromir began laughing as he patted my shoulder and let me go. He then went over to Frodo to comfort him a little bit. Haldir and Aragorn were arguing a little bit longer. Finally Haldir walked to Frodo.

"Very well. Here we will stay awhile, and come to the city of Galadhrim on the morrow."

We were taken up high into the trees. There were different platforms, all of them seeming to be very stable. The Fellowship was lead to one platform that we all were to use as a sleeping quarters. I sat by the edge, dangling my feet. We were high enough so that the leaves didn't completely cover the sky. The stars seemed brighter here. Before I knew it, I fell asleep at the edge.

* * *

**A/N: So, there was a freak out and some Fellowship bonding time... kind of. The end conversation with Boromir and Adie made me think they were flirting... but that could just be the paranoid person I am. I hope you enjoyed! Review!**

**A/N UPDATE: Thank you TheHatter for your advice! I fixed it so, I hope it's better now.**

**A/N UPDATE: I must have been tired last night because I didn't edit this right...**


	12. Chapter 11

**A/N: This was supposed to be posted last night, but my internet died on me right as I was going to save the document (because I accidentally pressed a button I shouldn't have) so... ENJOY!**

_Adela's/Wynter's thoughts... except for one part._

* * *

When Haldir woke us up the next morning, I was closer to where the rest of the Fellowship was with a blanket draped over me. "_I wonder who did this…_"

I sat the rest of the way up, taking out my messy braid. "_I'm shocked it lasted this long_," I thought, pulling my brush through the new waves in my hair. Pippin and Merry came over and sat in front of me. They both seemed a little bit nervous, occasionally pushing each other.

"You go first."

"No, you were the one who wanted to do this first. You go."

"You were the one who felt bad about this, you go first."

"No you go first."

"No you go."

"No you!"

"No, yo-"

"What is it," I asked. Merry looked around nervously. Pippin was having a staring contest with the ground. Finally Merry sighed and looked at me.

"We wanted to say we were sorry. We were thinking that if maybe we spent more time with you, you wouldn't have felt so lonely. It was kind of scary seeing you yell and break down yesterday."

I sighed, smiling at them slightly. "I'm sorry about that too. All of you have been taking care of me when you could have left me by myself and I am very grateful of that."

Merry and Pippin smiled brightly at that and tackled me to the ground, hugging me. "We promise to spend more time with you!"

I laughed a little bit at that. Merry and Pippin got off of me and went off to find Frodo and Sam. I began brushing my hair out again when Aragorn came over. He had some bags under his eyes and he looked tired. Slowly he sat down where Pip and Merry were before. His eyes were focused on me and I tried to focus on brushing out my hair.

"I'm sorry."

My hairbrush dropped out of my hand, "Wh-What?"

"I said I'm sorry. If only I threw you a bit harder you wouldn't have almost died."

"I… forgive you I guess."

"What do you mean you guess?"

"Well, I feel like I gave you a bit of trouble yesterday. You had to keep dragging me with you… and I sort of exploded on all of you guys yesterday."

He nodded his head slowly. Standing, he held out his hand and helped me up. "We're going to be leaving here soon. Be ready."

I went out to grab my bag, almost inaudibly muttering to myself, "So what? I don't get a 'I forgive you too' or 'it's okay'? Fine then."

We left soon after. Haldir lead us through the forest, speaking to Aragorn and Legolas occasionally. Merry and Pippin did what they said they would. They were walking besides me chatting animatedly about the songs in the Shire.

"Most of them are really only drinking songs," Merry said.

"They say the only real passion of a Hobbit is food and ale," Pippin added excitedly.

"Do you remember any songs," Merry asked.

Smiling, I replied, "I don't, but I highly doubt my singing voice is as lovely as my speaking voice is."

"I doubt that," Pippin quickly replied.

"Here, we'll try it," Merry responded.

That was when we stopped at a hill top. There were giant trees with a city built around, in, and through the trees. It glowed in the afternoon light in greens and silvers and golds. I stared in awe, vaguely registering what Haldir was saying.

"Caras Galadon. The heart of Elvendom on earth. This is the city of Galadhrim where dwell the Lord Celeborn and of Galadriel, Lady of Light."

It was amazing… until we got to the stairs. I was okay the first… five flights, but by the time we were a quarter of the way done with the steps, my thighs were burning and I felt like I was going to pass out. We made it through one more flight of stairs when I finally just sat against a wall... well the side of the tree.

"Y-You know wh-what? How about you a-all just go up there with-without me?"

I laid my head back against the moss covered tree. I was feeling so tired. Slowly, I closed my eyes and believed that they did what I said and left me there. Then I felt someone wrap my arms around their neck and lift me onto their back. I wrapped my legs around their midsection so I wouldn't fall. Opening my eyes, I was met with a mass of golden hair.

"L-Legolas?"

"Yes?"

"Well… you seriously could've just left me there. I bet I'm really heavy-"

"_regardless of the lack of food that I eat and the ton of exercise I'm getting_," my 'logical' inner voice said.

"-and I highly doubt you want to carry me up all these stairs."

"If you were left by yourself, you would have gotten yourself lost."

"I'd eventually find you guys though and if anything, I'm sure even Haldir would try to find me."

"I highly doubt I would," Haldir called out from in front of us.

"You only say that because you aren't faced with the situation."

"Just because we are in safe grounds," Legolas started, "Doesn't mean there isn't anything dangerous here."

"Like what falling off a tree?"

His clear blue eyes looked at me like he actually thought I would fall from a tree. My mouth dropped open in surprise. "You actually think I'd fall off a tree."

"It would not surprise me if you did."

Fuming, I let my legs drop by his hips. For some reason, it really peeved me off that he was treating me like a child. His grip tightened around my legs so he could keep supporting me.

"Put me down."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because we are almost there."

"Even more reason to put me down."

Quietly sighing, he put me down. I maneuvered myself around him, going around Frodo and Sam along the way, to go walk by Aragorn. Frodo walked a bit faster so he was standing almost in between Aragorn and me.

"Adela?"

"Yeah Frodo?"

"Do you ever regret joining us?"

I stayed quiet for a second or two. Honestly, I wasn't sure. There were times when all of the males here could be so frustrating. Not being able to bathe on a regular basis was upsetting too. But… these are people who are also looking after me. They took me in with little to no questions asked and accept me… mostly at least. I looked down at Frodo. He immediately reminded me of those little brothers in anime where they always talks about protecting you no matter what, even though they can barely protect themselves.

"Sometimes I do," I saw his eyes fill with sadness, "but at the same time I'm happy that I came along. I don't remember much and even when I was mute, you and Sam and Pippin and Merry took me in with no questions asked. I've learned a lot while traveling with you too, and I find that every new thing I find out about you or Gimli or Boromir or anyone of you here is exciting."

Frodo smiled at me. I knelt down and gave him a quick hug. "Learning about you is quite interesting in itself," Aragorn said from in front of us.

I stood up and caught back up with him, "How so?"

"You are a very odd person. That is the first thing I remember thinking about you when I first saw you. You dress differently from most of the women and the way you speak is strange. Also, you have this accent unlike any I have ever heard of. I honestly believed you were going to be a liability during our journey."

"But I proved you wrong, right?"

"Not at all. You were difficult to understand and had the oddest behaviors. Even when I gave you a stick to protect yourself with only as a joke, you actually used it. You don't dress or act like a woman and you play with dolls as if you _were_ six. At the same time, though, you bring a smile to most of our faces. You are innocent and naïve and it makes you charming."

"For one thing, you giving me that stick didn't feel like a joke. It felt like you wanted me dead. And was that a complement, or was I just insulted?"

Aragorn smiled slightly at me, "It was a complement."

That was when the stairs finally finished. There was a very big platform with another set of stairs. At the top were two bright lights though.

"_Did we actually die in Moria because I feel like Haldir just guided us to heaven_," I thought, covering my eyes from the bright light. When it finally dimmed, I looked up. There was a tall slender elf with long, wavy gold hair. She had a circlet on her head and her dress moved around her like water. She reached the bottom with her companion at her side. Her companion stepped forward and faced Aragorn.

"The enemy knows you have entered here. What hope you had in secrecy is now gone. Nine there are here, yet ten there were set out from Rivendell. Tell me, where is Gandalf? For I much desire to speak with him. I can no longer see him from afar."

The beautiful elf softly spoke, "Gandalf the Grey did not pass the borders of this land. He has fallen into Shadow."

Legolas looked up at her, his eyes hardening. "He was taken by both Shadow and flame. A Balrog of Morgoth. For we went needlessly into the net of Moria."

My eyes immediately went to the ground. Some of the loneliness that I let out before was slowly creeping back on me. The woman continued, "Needless were none of the deeds of Gandalf in life. We do not yet know his full purpose."

She looked at everyone, talking about what was to become of our quest.. When her eyes met mine I heard a voice, her voice in my head saying, "_Child, do not fret. There are things still unknown about the future as well as the present. I know of your true home._"

My eyes widened as I continued to stare at the elf whose gaze currently held Frodo's. "_Sh… She knows about me?_"

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Go now and rest, for you are weary with sorrow and much toil. Tonight, you will sleep in peace."

We all turned to go. Gimli, who was at the front of our group, was about to take the first step when the elf said my name.

"Adela?"

I turned around, facing her, "Yes?"

"Can you stay here a moment? I wish to speak with you."

I nodded my head and the Fellowship continued down their path. Pip and Merry looked at me before they quickly followed along. When their footsteps were finally out of ear shot, the woman looked towards her escort. She walked towards him and whispered in his ear for a minute. He nodded his head, leaving the room, Haldir following him out. We stood there in silence for a while longer until she turned to me. A small smile formed on her lips, "Come here Adela."

"How… What I mean is… Are you going to do anything to me?"

"Why would you think I would cause you any harm?"

"Because you said you knew I was… I was from a different place. Gandalf wanted me to keep it secret because we didn't know what sent me here and he did want to 'test our luck'. I thought that maybe you thought I was… evil I guess."

"No. Not at all Adela. I wish to learn more about where you are from, to see if I can help you."

"Help me with what?"

"Possibly bringing you back home."

"Do you think you can do that?"

"I am not sure, but I would like to try. Now tell me, what is your real name?"

"Wynter. My name is Wynter."

"Wynter," she repeated softly, her eyes looking over me, "It suits you, but not as well as Adela."

I smiled at that. After having the name Adela given to me for three, almost four months now, it was growing on me.

"Now, let us get you bathed and changed and then I will have Haldir lead you to your friends."

"Wait, I thought we were going to talk about my home?"

"Tomorrow. It had been a long day for you and I believe you deserve some rest."

A group of elves took me to a private room, located inside a tree. There was a copper tub off to the side filled with hot water. I took away my clothing and sat inside the tub. The water was turning brown quickly and I wanted to yell. After all those attempts at getting the dirt off in rivers, I was still filthy.

One of the elves came up to me and smiled. She had long blonde hair and bright blue eyes, like pretty much everyone else in this place. Quietly she sat behind me.

"I'm going to wash your hair now, if that is alright."

I nodded and she poured clean water over my head. She began massaging my scalp with oils. Sighing, I closed my eyes, enjoying the feel of her fingertips on my head. I heard the remaining elves, which were probably about two or three others, talking quietly to each other. The elf that was washing my hair poured the rest of the water over it.

"What's your name?"

She looked at me, slightly surprised I talked, "I am Nátulcien."

"I was wondering Nátulcien if you had a knife or razor I could use."

She looked at me quizzically, "Why?"

"Be-Because I want to shave."

"But you have no beard…"

"I mean my legs. It is common to do where I'm from."

She nodded her head and left the room, hopefully getting something sharp that can cut. I took the soap on the side of the tub and began scrubbing at my skin. Nátulcien came back and held out a knife with a handle that was about the same length as the blade, which was sharpened at one side. I took the knife by the handle and smiled.

"Thank you very much Nátulcien."

"You are… welcome," she smiled at me.

I took the soap and lathered up some suds. Sticking my leg out of the water, I began shaving at the gorilla hair my body had grown. By the time I finished, the soap was almost gone and the water was luke-warm. I stood, using the water to clear off my skin. One of the other elves handed me a towel and I wrapped myself in the cloth.

"Your skin is so pale," one of them remarked.

"You have been traveling cross country for three months now, yes? Why are you still so white," another asked.

I began feeling exposed. There were perfect looking people standing in the same room as me observing a somewhat naked me. I pulled the towel closer to myself. The third elf put her hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see her grey-blue eyes. "Let's brush out your hair now."

I nodded and she started drying my hair. Nátulcien and the others began talking about colors and my skin. Then I heard the word dress. Two small fires started inside me. One was anxiety and the other was excitement. What girl doesn't like dresses? They were nice to wear every once in a while, but I saw how long the sleeves and the skirts were on the elves around me. If the dress they put me in is like the ones they were wearing, it probably will not stay clean for very long.

The elf that was drying my hair took off the towel and began brushing it.

"I am just going to get all the knots out of your hair and then once you are dressed we'll style it."

"Okay."

When she finished brushing my hair, there were three dresses picked. One was a very, very long white one with very, very long sleeves. It had some kind of gold embroidery on the front and the top of the sleeves were connected to the sides of the dress, leaving a pair of holes to show off my shoulders.

The next dress had long sleeves, too, but they were shorter than the white dress. The beginning of these sleeves was completely off the shoulder. It seemed to be made out of satin and it shone in the light a little bit. It had a gold-colored sash, belt thing paired with it.

Then there was the dress that Nátulcien was holding. It was a dark blue with some white fabric wrapped around the part where the sleeves began to flare out above the elbow. The neckline was circular with silver embroidery on it. It laced up in the back and it looked pretty.

"Which one would you like to wear?"

"Well… can't I just wear my other clothes?"

"No! Those were filthy! We were planning on throwing them out."

"P-Please no! Just wash them and they'll be okay."

The elf with holding the white dress sighed, "Alright. Now, which one would you like to wear?"

"Umm… the dark blue one I guess."

Nátulcien helped me get laced up and I discovered that the sleeves were cut down the center so my fore-arms were exposed. I looked to the elves around me. There was a thought that I didn't think of before.

"How did you choose these clothes? They fit me well and I wouldn't think you had enough time to make any clothes. Especially without my measurements."

Nátulcien smiled at me, "There were some of us about the same height as you when we were adolescents. The other dresses may have been bigger on you, but since you chose this one, by lacing up the back, it could 'adjust' to your size."

I nodded. Then the elf that brushed my hair pulled me to a vanity in the room and started brushing my hair again. She took the front part of my hair and began braiding it back. When the braids met in the back, she combined the two braids into one and continued down my back. While she did that, one of the other elves placed a pair of shoes on the vanity. They were dark blue like the dress and seemed more like slippers. Well, not house slippers, but more like the black shoes Cinderella wears in the Disney movie.

"Almost done. Now where did I put that one clip?"

"Here it is," Nátulcien replied handing her a silver star clip. She thanked her and clipped it in my hair where the three braids met.

"All done."

I slipped on my shoes and looked at my reflection in the full length mirror in the room. My hair was neatly done and the dress made my waist look smaller than I was used to. I turned my body side to side to get a better view of the whole dress. When I looked back, there was only Nátulcien and the elf who did my hair in the room with me.

"Thank you. Thank you very much."

They smiled and were about to leave when I called out.

"Wait! I was wondering what your name was," I said to the elf who styled my hair.

"I am Ránëwén. If you need any assistance while you are here, please do not hesitate to call on me."

"Or me," Nátulcien said before they both left the room. I stayed looking at my reflection for a while. I was thinner and they were right about me still being pale.

"_I bet it was all the dirt's fault_," I thought.

There was a knock at the door and it opened afterwards.

"I am here to escort yo-"

Haldir stopped in his tracks when he saw me.

"Well don't act too shocked. It might hurt my feelings," I said with a slight pout on my face.

"Now if only you were silent, you would be a sight to behold."

I lightly punched him in the arm. For a second I could almost say I saw a smile, but it also could have been my eyes playing tricks on me. He laced my arm through his and we started down the stairs. By the second flight, I had already tripped six times.

**-Legolas POV (after the meeting with Galadriel on the way to their sleeping "quarters")-**

Once we left the presence of Lady Galadriel, we were led to a clearing to make camp. There we were given tents and help to set them up. When everything was in order, only the Fellowship was left in the clearing… or at least most of us. I was sitting under one of the trees in the clearing when Aragorn came to sit by me.

"I noticed you were quick to carry Adela on your back."

"If she was left there she would have gotten lost trying to find us. I was only saving us from future troubles."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Why are you wondering about it?"

My friend shrugged with a small smile on his face.

"What is it," I inquired, wishing that the knowing smile on his face would quickly disappear.

"Nothing. It is just I would have expected better sight from a young ellon such as yourself."

"I do not understand."

His smile only grew more. He called Peregrin and Meriadoc over, asking about how Adela was doing before the stairs.

"She was getting along fine," Peregrin started.

"We were talking about the Shire and the songs we had there. We asked her if she remembered any songs and she said she didn't," Meriadoc continued for his cousin.

"But then she started talking about how her singing voice was probably terrible. We were about to have her test it, but then we got distracted."

Aragorn nodded, a certain glint in his eye as he asked his next question. "How was she during the stairs?"

"She seemed tired. It looked like she would have fallen asleep on them if Legolas hadn't carried her," Merry started.

"But then she seemed to grow irritated at Legolas's comment about how she would get lost and possibly fall off a tree."

"I wouldn't say irritated Pip, I would say more hurt or disappointed."

Before the conversation continued, Aragorn asked another question. One that sounded like it would be his last.

"And what did you think of Legolas sacrificing his strength to carry Adela?"

"I'd say he decided to carry her quickly," Pippin began, "It didn't even seem like there was much of a chance given to see if she would continue."

"It was also somewhat like that during the Crebain. Legolas immediately protected Adie when harm became known."

"And now what conclusion would you draw from his actions?"

Meriadoc was the first to answer, "If I didn't know any better, I would say that Legolas cared for Adie as a friend. Almost like a younger sister, maybe. But then I've seen him looking at her at times when he thinks no one else is noticing and last night he carried away from the edge of the platform. Almost as if he was afraid something would happen and she would fall off. I believe that Legolas-"

Then there was a scream from over by the stairs. We quickly stood, grabbing our weapons and ran towards them. When we came into view, Boromir was already there along with Gimli. Haldir was on the stairs, gripping the waist of a dark-haired girl with pale skin. Her hands gripped his arms as her eyes were shut tight. Something seemed familiar about her though.

"A-Adie?"

* * *

**A/N: Sooo what'd ya'll think? I decide to do another Legolas POV just for kicks and giggles (but I feel like the way I was portraying him was very... Spock-ish. Guess that's because I saw Star Trek: Into the Darkness Friday.) So do you guys like it? Hate it? Think I could do better at one part or another? Well I won't know unless you tell me, so REVIEW! 3**


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N: This should have been soooo much longer, but I had writers block. BUT the next chapter should be longer and up sooner than this one... it's soo short! I'm sorry, but I still hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

My heart was still racing from falling. I gripped tightly onto Haldir's arm around my waist. I think I hate dresses from this place now.

"A-Adie," I heard Frodo say from the bottom of the stair case. I nodded and slowly opened my eyes.

"Right here."

Haldir straightened me up and helped me the rest of the way down the stairs. I didn't let go of his arm until I was down at the bottom. Slowly, I let the iron grip I had on him loosen.

"Thank you for letting go of my arm," Haldir said rubbing his forearm, "I should have guessed that you would eventually fall from how many times you tripped."

"Sorry, but I don't usually wear exceeding floor length dresses."

"Then what do you usually wear, might I ask?"

"Pants. A shirt. Normal clothing."

"That men wear. You are a girl and should be dressing as such."

"Because these types of dresses will totally help me if I had to run up a mountain or down a hill."

"Adela," I heard Pippin and Merry shout from behind me. I looked back to see them and smiled.

"Hi guys."

"You look so pretty," Pip said, looking at me in awe.

"Thank you."

"Why is this the first time that we've seen you in a dress, though? Wouldn't you have worn one in Rivendell? Especially during the council."

"She was too busy getting changed and hiding in bushes to wear them," Aragorn replied walking towards us.

"So Arwen told you. Well then you caught me," I said.

Haldir cleared his throat, "Well if you do not need anything else, I shall be leaving."

He turned to leave, but I grabbed his arm. When he looked down at me, he had an eyebrow raised, "Yes?"

I motioned for him to bring his head down and he did so. Quickly I cupped my hands around his ear. "May I please ask a favor of you?"

He nodded his head and I continued.

"I was hoping you could teach me how to fight. Would you be willing to teach me?"

Slowly, he looked me over. His face was saying no. I sighed heavily and pouted my lip slightly. His face kept saying no. I widened my eyes, trying to make them water. "_Come on, this worked on Ed and Haru all the time! Just work for me now please!_"

"No."

"Fine, but I won't leave this spot until you say yes."

"As you wish," and he turned away leaving. I crossed my arms and glared at his back, hoping my imaginary daggers that were stabbing him were causing him pain. Pippin and Merry stared up at me.

"What did you ask him," Merry asked.

"Are you really going to stay here until he says yes," Pip asked after.

"Do you fancy him?"

"But she can't possibly fancy him! She insulted him!"

"But she could've been using that to cover up the fact that she fancies him."

"Oh! So do you fancy him then?"

"No," I said in a bitter tone.

"Why not?"

"Because he's an elf."

"And what is so bad about elves," I heard a familiar smooth voice say from behind me.

"Your bi-polar attitudes on how you want to treat me and also you live forever just being perfect. I'd hate having to grow old and wrinkly with grey hair while my partner still looks the same as the day we first met. Why should someone have to deal with the fact that their loved ones have to watch them fade away while they stay young, healthy, and beautiful for all eternity?"

"I see your point, but a relationship between an ellon and a human female never ends well. The female always seems to die."*

"Well everyone loves a pre-mature death, don't they?"

Legolas looked at me quizzically, "I do not understand. Most people would not love to die early."

"I was being sarcastic."

"Sarcastic," Merry quickly entered the conversation again.

"What does that mean," Pippin continued.

"Umm…. I don't remember…," I trailed off, looking at Aragorn and Legolas's retreating forms. Sighing, I sat down on the ground.

"So you really are going to stay here until Haldir says yes," Merry asked, looking slightly concerned.

I nodded my head. He shook his head a little bit, "I'll go get you a blanket then."

I looked up at him, "Thank you Merry."

He smiled and walked off, Pippin trailing behind him. I lied back and stared up at the tops of the trees. They were glowing silver and blue. The leaves were a gold color, but they never fell. Closing my eyes, I breathed in deeply, savoring the cool night air.

"_Why isn't it colder? It should be January. The leaves here should have fallen and there should be snow. Why isn't there any here?_"

A little bit after that I fell asleep, my heart heavy from disappointments. I started dreaming. I was dreaming about Ed and Haru looking for me. They went back home in the morning after giving up. There was a voice, a very soft voice trying to talk to me. It steadily grew louder, but before I could make out what I was saying I felt someone shake me awake.

"Hm…?"

"Wake up," I heard Haldir say, "Lady Galadriel wishes to see you."

"No. Not until you say you'll train me."

"Come now, stop acting foolish. The Lady wishes to see you."

"I'm not being foolish," I said, sitting up and more alert, "I'm at a point where I could be left behind by the only people I know because I can't fight. Please help me Haldir. Please."

He sighed heavily and kneeled down to my level, "Fine, but after the Lady is done speaking with you."

I smiled widely and hugged him, "Thank you Haldir! I knew you weren't a completely terrible person!"

"That does not make me feel better. Now come along."

Everyone else was still asleep as we left. Only a few people were up when we were walking through the trees, too. When we reached the steps that lead up to Galadriel, I stopped. I was worried how this was going to turn out. When I noticed Haldir already half-way up the first flight, I hurried to follow him. This time I made it halfway up the stairs before giving up. I sat down, breathing heavily. Haldir stood by me, "If you can barely handle making it up these steps, you shall have a very hard time with training."

"I-I… can eventually… make it u-up here… Just give me a d-day… or two… three at the most."

After a couple minutes went by, I stood up and continued up the steps. We eventually reached the top after several more stops. Galadriel was sitting down in a chair that was paired with a table. There was an empty seat across from her and she was drinking something. She smiled at me.

"Thank you for bringing her here Haldir. You may go now if you wish."

"Yes my lady," Haldir bowed and left. I walked over to Galadriel and stood in front of her. She looked over my attire and I brushed off some of the dirt that got on the dress when I was sleeping.

"_I really wish I had at least brushed out my hair a little bit before I came here._"

"I am very happy you choose this dress," Galadriel said, "It was one that I picked out, thinking it would look very nice on you. It appears I was right and your hair looks fine. Come now, take a seat."

She motioned for me to sit down across from her and I did. The chair was comfy with a soft cushion. She picked up a jug and poured me some water. I took a small drink from the cup and breathed out heavily.

"Is there something that troubles you?"

"Yes. Sort of."

"What is it?"

"I had a dream last night about my brother and his best friend. I think… I think that they were looking for me… and there was a voice. I couldn't really hear it and before I could make out what it was saying, Haldir woke me up."

She nodded, taking another drink from her glass. We were silent for a few more minutes, the only sounds filling the room was the occasional '_chink_' from our cups. Finally Galadriel looked at me again. "What is your family like in your world?"

"W-Well, my mom works as a secretary for a nearby company. She works almost twenty-four/seven. She isn't always at the office though. She always makes sure to come home by 5 so we can all have dinner together. Then my dad works as Vice President for the same company. He travels around, handling negotiations for contacts with other companies. That's how my parents met. My dad was away on business when the President hired my mom and when he came back, he started complaining that he was being replaced. He was afraid mom was going to take his position and she almost did. Their boss offered my dad's position to my mom, but she turned it down. She said that she knew dad wanted to keep his job and that she had a crush on him, so she turned it down for him. My dad says that was probably about the time he knew he loved mom."

"That's very sweet. What about your brother? And his friend?"

"My brother's name is Edmund. He is currently in college, which is one of the highest educations you can get where I'm from. He's planning on Majoring in Business so he can follow in our dad's footsteps. Haru is his friend, but he's pretty much like a brother to both Edmund and me. Edmund and Haru have been friends since they were in kindergarten. Haru's parents had some work with my parents sometimes, so we started seeing each other a lot. Haru and Ed also went to the same school, so when people were picking on Ed, Haru would swoop in a save him."

Galadriel smiled, "And what about yourself?"

"W-Well, I'm considered normal," I said not expecting her to ask about me, "I go to school and… well I don't really do a whole lot else. I watch these animated shows called anime and then a lot of ummm… Well plays if I was to explain it. Sometimes I play on a keyboard I got as a present and practice songs that I like."

"What is a keyboard?"

"Do you have a harpsichord or piano here?"

"Yes."

"Well, a keyboard is sort of like that except it's easier to move and you can change the tone of the notes."

She nodded, understanding while she took another drink. "There is something else about you. Something that you feel sets you apart from your family."

I nodded, "Before I came here, I found out I was adopted. I got mad at my parents because I found out that they weren't planning on telling me about it. Then I got hurt because the way my mom spoke about it made me feel like that they didn't trust me enough not to go out and find my birth mom. So I was in a pretty bad place with my parents before I got here. That's why I need to go home, so I can make things better."

"Well I believe that can be considered very honorable. Now, I believe you and Haldir have a training session. You can go now so you can change before you begin your training."

"Okay."

I stood and I almost left before I turned around, remembering something. "By the way, Galadriel?"

She lifted her gaze up from the table, "Yes?"

"Thank you. For trying to help me. I really appreciate it."

She smiled at me, "You are welcome child. Now go or you shall be late."

I smiled and hurried down the steps. It feels nice being able to tell someone about your home…

* * *

**A/N: Gods I feel like a horrible person. You guys deserved more of a chapter, but I've been so stuck with this! I know what I want to happen, but I don't know how to get there... Anyway this * by the sentence that Legolas said, I shall explain now. I read somewhere that even though there were a few male!human/female!elf relationships, there weren't really any male!elf/female!human relationships. The only one that was ever recorded didn't even happen because the two had a fortune/prophecy about them that pretty much said they would both die if they were together (but it's sweet because neither of them got married because they loved each other too much.) Or at least that's what I found when doing my research (Andreth is the woman and Aegnor is the elf). So I added it to make it a bit more interesting... so... after this short chapter and adding yet ANOTHER reason why Wynter and Legolas can't exactly be together, who hates me now?... Review? ^^"**


	14. Chapter 13

**A/N: So apparently, I'm doing my 2,000 word chapters again... I would've made it longer, I swear! It just felt like a good stopping point... Enjoy!**

_Adela/Wynter's thoughts..._

* * *

Nátulcien and Ránëwén met me at the bottom of the stairs. They were holding a pair of leggings and my tank top. I smiled at them waving on my way down.

"Hello again. You guys didn't actually throw my stuff away! Thank you very much."

Nátulcien smiled back and hugged me, "It is nice to see you again as well. We were hoping to see you soon. It was fun dressing you up. Although this time we can't make you beautiful again."

"Of course not," Ránëwén said, "She is training with Haldir. If we made her pretty again, by the time the first 3 minutes are over the dress would be ruined and her hair would be a mess. We still have plenty of time to experiment with her."

"E-Experiment," I asked, slightly scared.

"Of course. With hair styles, colors, maybe we could use some face powder to bring color to your eyelids. There are so many possibilities; of course we want to experiment on you."

"Enough talk now," Nátulcien said, "The faster she finishes training, the quicker we can dress her up! For her to be ready to train, though, we must get her changed. Come now."

They grabbed my arms and pulled me with them to the room from the previous night. I changed while they were talking about how my hair should be done. I came out and they handed me a pair of boots to slip on.

"I think if we just pull her bangs back and clip them so they stay out of her face that would look nice."

"But a high-ponytail would be a very female warrior type hairstyle! A motivator to push herself!"

"She may be learning a skill that a male must know, but it does not mean she should feel obligated to feel as if she should be one."

"How else is she supposed to live with them, though? If she does not plan on being lonely, she'll have to start thinking like one of them. Violence, blood, war, battle strategies!"

"Umm…" I said cutting in, "They aren't like that at all really. Well, Gimli is a little bit, but they all have their own likes and interests. Merry likes studying maps and Pippin enjoys dancing and singing almost as much as food. Frodo is a quiet fellow and he likes to read. Sam enjoys gardening and planting. He says that watching a small seed slowly grow and bloom bright and beautifully out of the soil is one of the greatest and proudest sights to behold."

The two elves looked at each other and smiled. "As you say," Ránëwén said, gathering my hair up into a high ponytail like Nátulcien suggested. She tied it up with a band of leather and then my mind went back to when Legolas braided my hair. I started to feel sad. We were… close. Or as close as two people can get when one can't talk and can only learn about someone else's culture. It was nice being able to listen to him. His voice was always very soft and had a sweet tone to it. It was like you could listen to it forever and have the hardest time to stop listening to it.

I felt someone nudge my shoulder. My head whipped around and I saw Nátulcien and Ránëwén looking and me with concern in their eyes.

"Are you feeling okay," Nátulcien asked coming to sit beside me.

I laughed a little bit and nodded, "I'm just fine just… thinking."

Ránëwén looked at me with a knowing look in her eyes. She smiled and grabbed mine and Nátulcien's hands.

"Come now or else Haldir will get mad that you are late."

We began walking down the steps. The two elves were discussing a banquet that Galadriel was planning for the Fellowship. They went over ideas for hair and dresses, mine as well as their own. We were about to go around a corner when we ran into Legolas. Nátulcien gasped as Ránëwén's eyes widened. Almost immediately they dropped down into curtseys.

"Your Highness," they said.

"What do you mean 'Your Highness'," I asked, confused. I thought Legolas was there as like a knight or a page for his king. That's the way he made it seem.

"This is Legolas Prince of Mirkwood. Did you not know that," Ránëwén asked, appearing slightly shocked.

I shook my head and turned to look at Legolas. "This isn't helping you at all," I said.

"What do you mean," Legolas asked.

"I mean, you keep proving more and more that elves are perfect… or at least you are. The beautiful, long, flowing golden locks. The gorgeous blue eyes that look grey and sometimes even _brown_* depending on the light. Your tall structure and arm muscles, amazing hearing, _walking on snow_; And now, you're a prince. A _prince_. You're too fudging perfect!"

The rage flooded through my veins as I stormed down the stairs. Why was I getting so worked up about this? I shouldn't care about how perfect he can get.

"_But you do anyway_," my inner voice said in a sing-song type voice.

"_Shut up. This doesn't concern you._"

"_Oh, but it does. I know more about you than you, yourself are aware of._"

"_Oh yeah? Like what?_"

"_Like the fact that you-_"

"There you are," I heard Haldir say. I noticed I was in a courtyard type place with swords and targets and other training supplies. Haldir was walking towards me holding a bag looking slightly irritated. When he reached me he put the bag in my hands.

"It feels empty. What is it for?"

"We will be using it for your training."

"How?"

He turned and pointed out a cleared path that went around the courtyard in a circle. There was a giant pile of stones by the path at one spot.

"I want you to run laps around the field until that bag is filled with rocks."

"But won't that screw up my shoulder by carrying the bag on one side?"

He started to smirk, as if hoping I would say that. Quickly, he went over to his things and pulled out another bag.

"Here. Now you have to do laps until you fill both of those bags up with rocks. We will break for breakfast and lunch. If you are not finished by the time I call off the session, you stay here over night to finish. Do you understand?"

My eyes widened. "_What the hell? Does he still have a grudge against me for telling him he had a stick shoved up his butt?_"

"_You were the one who asked him to train you_," my inner voiced argued with me again.

"_Yeah, but he doesn't have to kill me!_"

Sighing, I put the bags on so they made an X over my chest. I went over to the rock pile and lined up with them.

"Go," Haldir said. It was brutal. The first three laps were okay. Not great, but okay. Then as the bag on one side of my chest began to fill up, running became awkward. I was being forced to one side while trying to keep the sir going through my nose and mouth. A stitch in my side was building up, but whenever I stopped to try to get the pain to go away, Haldir would yell about having to run over-night. So I continued running even though the pain soon became unbearable. My first bag was about halfway full when Haldir let us break for food. He handed me an apple, bread, cheese, and some meat. I ate the bread, cheese, and meat together, quickly.

"Slow down or you will make yourself sick. When was the last time you ate?"

I slowed and thought about it, "Yesterday… at lunch. Which only consisted of some salted meat and an apple. What time is it anyway?"

"It is about 9:00."

My eyes widened. It was only that early?

"What time did you wake me up," I asked.

"About 5. You were gone for an hour when you came here."

"Soo… having my bag half-way full is a good thing?"

"It could be better."

"How?!"

"Most of my men would already have a bag full."

"But they're elves! I'm a human!"

"And a girl at that. You have done well," Haldir said, smiling a little bit. I smiled back and we finished our meal in silence. During the break, my breathing evened out and the stitch in my side left. By the time lunch rolled around, my bag was full and there were a few pebbles in the other bag. My legs burned as I sat down next to Haldir. I took the food he offered and ate in silence, trying to catch my breath.

"What time is it now," I asked, taking a break from inhaling my food.

"A little after noon."

"Soo… I could probably be done about 6."

"What?"

"Training. I could be done around six."

"And why do you suppose that?"

"Because it took me six hours to fill up my first bag. In theory it should take that long to fill the second, right?"

Haldir shrugged. Before I began running again I took a few gulps of water from a pouch… type thing. I was wrong about being done in six hours...

My breathing was ragged and my lungs were burning. The moon was peeking over the trees when my bag was almost full. Tears were in my eyes from the pain in my side. I pushed through the last few laps and collapsed on the ground crying.

Haldir came to kneel by me. He placed his hand on my shoulder and began to help me take off the bags.

"Th-That h-hurt," I said, sniffling and hiccupping. My lungs were still burning and I was gasping to keep the air in my lungs.

"Take deep breaths. In through your nose and out your mouth. Listen to me. In… Out… In… And out," Haldir said quietly. I matched my breathing up to what he was telling me. It took a few minutes, but my breathing soon became bearable.

"Come now. We will get some food and then you should rest. You have an early day tomorrow too."

I nodded as he helped me off the ground. We walked silently up the steps to a dining hall. There we ate and then Haldir escorted me back to where camp was made. I felt dead on my feet. When we got there, I quickly and quietly told Haldir 'thank you' and went over to the nearest empty bed. I fell on it, curled up into myself, and slept soundly.

The next morning, someone was shaking me awake… and it hurt… a lot.

"Stooooooooop iiiiiiit," I whined, trying to hit away the arm, "it huuuurtsss."

"Get up. We have things to do."

Sighing, I uncurled myself and then stopped.

"Oh my gods…"

"What is it now?"

"You killed my legs. You're going to kill me! My muscles! You made my muscles hurt! I can't move now! No! No!"

I think was yelling because I heard Merry ask what all the ruckus was about. I also saw Aragorn, Pippin, and Legolas in my vision. Haldir's face had a very peeved off expression.

"Get up now, or I shall make you myself."

"No! You're going to kill me," I yelled, shoving my face into my pillow and grabbing a hold of it for dear life. My yelling woke up Boromir, whose voice was in the background asking what was going on. I felt arms go around my midsection and lift me up. My legs were burning in pain as I felt a hard shoulder pressing against my hips.

"No! Don't take me! Pippin! Merry! Someone please, save me!"

No one made any move to rescue me. I began hitting Haldir on the back, but soon accepted my fate.

"Aragorn. Before I die, I need to tell you that you weren't always such a big jeeerrrkkkk," I held onto the last word as I was being carried out of view. From behind me I heard Haldir sighing heavily.

"You are the most dramatic person I have ever seen. Keep in mind that you do not know how long you shall be here. You should be training as much as possible."

Pouting, I nodded. In a quiet, defeated voice I said, "Yes, sir…"

Haldir was nice enough to carry me to the training grounds… until he dropped me.

"Owwwww! Why did you do that?"

"Get up. We shall be training with a sword today."

He handed me a curved blade. I cautiously took the handle, expecting it to be heavy. It was the lightest thing I had ever held. Haldir took a stance and told me to imitate him. I spread my feet shoulder-width apart and mimicked his upper body. He got out of his stance and checked over me. When he found something wrong, he adjusted it. After several adjustments, he stopped.

"Hold that position until I tell you to stop."

Gritting my teeth from the pain my thighs were causing me, I complied. When Haldir said I could stop for breakfast, I couldn't even move. I felt like I was stuck in that position until someone came and poked me, which in turn made me fall.

"Owie."

I looked up and saw two more Haldirs. Quietly I sobbed.

"Haldir, why didn't you tell me you could clone yourself? I'm going to go through three times more hell now."

One of the copies laughed. Haldir stood from where he was sitting.

"Rumil, Orophin. What are you doing here?"

"We came to check up on you and your newest pupil, brother. She seems to be very amusing."

"She is a hardship, to say the least."

I sat up from where I was sitting and glared at him. "Hasn't your mother ever taught you not to talk about someone negatively within ear shot," I growled.

"I believe I was out doing better things during that lesson," Haldir replied with a smirk.

"_Hmm, so someone like you can make jokes too._"

"Anyway," a kinder voice came out from one of the brothers, "We were hoping you would have breakfast with us."

"And were somewhat hoping you could have the Fellowship join us," the assumed youngest said looking at me.

"I'd love to, but I have a situation. I can't move my legs. At all," I replied looking up at Haldir. He shrugged, turning away.

"You know, I could almost mistake you for an older brother of mine. Almost."

"And why is that?"

"You can be mean to me, yet you can be nice. But it's almost because, frankly, you're too blonde to have come from my family."

"Well if you think of us as your brothers," the one I assumed was the youngest started, "then why don't we just carry you to the dining hall?"

He lifted me up in a princess fashion. "I said Haldir did. I don't even know your name. There is no possible way for you to be considered my brother if I barely know you," I said, looking up into the grey eyes of the elf.

"I am Rumil. You know Haldir and the one behind me is Orophin."

"Adela. Pleased to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine. Now we must go! The food will turn cold and stale if we do not hurry brothers!"

Rumil took off running, and I felt like I was going to fall.

"Haldirrrrrr! Come back and carry me! PLEASE!"

* * *

**A/N: Soo I decided that I need to lay off the shoujo manga. I honestly think that's what made me write Rumil like that... Anyway, next chapter shall start from Legolas POV! This (*) was there becauses, since the characters kind of look like the actors who play them, Orlando forgot his blue contacts during some of the scenes, and so his eyes were brown. Just thought I should add that. ALSO! I'M AT 82 REVIEWS WITH ONLY 13 CHAPTERS! THAT IS SOOO COOL! THANK YOU ALL! Review so we can try to make it to 100 Please!**


	15. Chapter 14

**A/N: We're at 90 Reviewwwsss We're at 90 Reviewwwwsssss! THANK YOU ALL EACH AND EVERYONE OF YOU! Now, enjoy.**

_This means that someone is thinking. I would say Adela, but Legolas is thinking in his POV..._

* * *

**-Legolas POV-**

The doors to the dining hall were slammed open. My head whipped around to see Adela being carried in by Rumil, Haldir's younger brother. An unfamiliar feeling began building up inside of me. A very big part inside me wished that I was the one to carry her like that.

Rumil careful set her down at the table, across from me and beside Peregrin and Meriadoc. She grabbed onto the table and was shaking. The bitter feeling within me quickly melted away and I began feeling concerned. Then she lifted up her head, some of her hair falling in front of her face. Her eyes were a brown-green color and they shined lightly with tears. She glared at the Marchwarden's brother.

"Never do that again. You almost dropped me several times."

"You had fun though! You were screaming the whole way."

"I was screaming to Haldir to save me."

Almost as if the Marchwarden heard his name, which he probably did, he entered the hall along with his older brother. They came over to our table and Haldir greeted us, introducing his brothers. We nodded our heads in return. Aragorn introduced himself and the others followed in suit. When I was my turn, Rumil smiled at me.

"The Prince of Mirkwood has no need of introductions. He is well known around these parts. His archery skills are legendary."

"Thank you," I nodded my head. I heard a soft grumbling from where Adela was sitting. Her head was turned away from me as she glared at the wall. Peregrin grabbed onto her arm to get her attention.

"We're sorry we didn't help you earlier. We were just… afraid of Haldir."

She glanced at the young Halfling and smiled brightly. Quickly she hugged him tightly. "You are the most adorable thing ever, you know!"

"You do know that we are all older than you, right," Meriadoc called out after swallowing his food. Adela froze slightly. Her head lifted up.

"Seriously?"

He nodded in response. She made a small noise in the back of her throat, signaling that she understood. The Marchwarden and his brothers took a seat by us and began eat. Suddenly, with no warning, Adela stood up quickly. A look of pain crossed over her face as she hunched over.

"Oh gods. That hurt like a mother," she said quietly under her breath.

"Are you okay Adie," Frodo asked, worried for the wom- child that was under his care.

"Y-Yes. I was just wondering how old all of you guys were."

"Did it really call for standing, though, little one," Boromir said with a small smile on his face.

"I guess not… but I want to know how old you guys are! In comparison to my devastatingly short fifteen years."

I heard the brothers beside me start coughing. Haldir took a few drinks from his cup as he looked over to Adela.

"You are fifteen?"

She nodded, smiling brightly.

"That would explain why you are so light then," Rumil said, recovering.

"I believe that is actually from how little she eats," Aragorn said from beside me.

"Stop avoiding the question, please! Aragorn how old are you?"

My friend blinked in shock, not expecting to be the first one to be asked, "I am 87."

"Nice joke Aragorn. Now seriously, how old are you?"

"I am 87, Adela. I am a part of the Dúnedain. We are a race blessed with long life."

"Well… you are very attractive for an 87 year old."

Aragorn laughed, "Thank you Adela."

"Gimli, how old are you," she said, finally sitting back down. Reaching across the table she grabbed for a roll and began nibbling at it.

"I am 140 years old, lassie."

"How long do dwarves usually live?"

"We live to be about 250. Some of the lucky ones live to be to at least 300. Some even longer."

She nodded her head, "Boromir, how old are you?"

"I am 41."

"Frodo?"

"I am 33 Adie."*

"Sam?"

"32, Miss Adie."**

"Merry?"

"30."

"What about you Pippin?"

"I am 28."

She started nodding again, finishing her bread. She reached out for another piece while I was waiting. As the time grew on, irritation started to build within me. Wasn't she curious about my age at all?

"Adie, why haven't you asked Legolas how old he is," Merry said. I silently thanked the Hobbit.

"Because I'm afraid of the answer."

"There is no harm in asking someone's age," I said quickly before I lost my chance.

"Unless they're a female. Then they'll kill you," she replied, taking an apple from the center of the table. A heard a faint chuckling around me. It only fueled my irritation at her, but I tried my best to stay calm.

"Yes, but I am no female."

"True enough, but do I really want to know how many centuries you've seen? How many wars you've fought in or even how many people you have grown to cherish only to watch them die? That seems to be too morbid a path to go down."

I mentally sighed, thinking that this was how it was going to end. I refocused on my food, feeling sad that she did not want to know more about me. "_Maybe she is not interested anymore. I told her so many things about Elven culture, but almost nothing about myself. She still seems mad at me also._"

"Legolas."

My head snapped up and I saw her looking at me. Her eyes went from the green-brown from before, to a shining green. Her hair was framing her face and she kept staring at me. The air in my throat was trapped and my heart slowed. Forcing the air through out of myself I replied, "Yes?"

"Why didn't you say before that you were a prince?"

"It never came up."

"Yes it did. Kind of. When you were talking about Mirkwood. At any time you could have mentioned it, but you didn't. Why not?"

"_Because I didn't want you to treat me differently._"

"Because it is not information I give out lightly to people I barely know."

Her hands were gripped into fists and her cheeks became more and more flushed. The muscles in her jaw were flexing and unflexing. Then she sighed heavily, grabbing a couple more apples. She placed them in a cloth and tied it.

"I'm full, so I'll be heading back first Haldir."

He nodded, "Don't stray too far out of the grounds. I will finish up here as fast as I can."

She shook her head, "No, take your time. Enjoy your breakfast with your brothers. See ya."

And she left. I heard her heavy footsteps going down the stairs. After about two minutes they were gone. Rumil and Orophin slid down to fill in her space. A smirk was on Rumil's face and Orophin was looking at the door slightly worried.

"You messed up Legolas," Aragorn said, taking a bit of pork from his plate.

"I do not know what you are referring to."

"Well then, I shall not tell you until you figure it out yourself."

I looked down at my food again, stabbing repeatedly at the meat seated in front of me. Something was causing my stomach to feel nauseous and hurt.

"_What you did was for the best_," a voice in my head told me. I could only hope that it was right.

**-Adela/Wynter POV-**

I felt heavy as I walked down the steps back to the training grounds. I wanted to feel mad, I really did, but I also knew he was right. None of the really even knew me and I couldn't exactly tell them my whole life story without all hell breaking loose. I could never be honest with these people who considered me their friend, who I considered friends also.

I reached the training grounds, feeling terrible. The pain in my legs even felt numb. I scooped up the sword that Haldir gave me earlier and I started messing around with it. Every slash with the blade that I took glided beautifully in the air. Feeling a bit brave, I went over to one of the dummies. I stabbed at it a few times, but couldn't really get into it. My mind started drifting back to breakfast.

"_It's not my fault that I couldn't talk. I mean, he was giving away a whole bunch of information about the Elves, why didn't he add the fact that he was a prince to it? It's not fair! Even now, after traveling with him for almost four months, he still says he barely knows me. He does know me though, right?_"

No inner voice answered me. My thoughts circulated around that until anger began to fill me again. I began stabbing relentlessly at the straw dummy in front of me, imagining it have long blonde hair and blue eyes. A heard someone clear their throat from behind me. Turning I saw Haldir watching me.

"Have you been stabbing at the doll since you got here?"

"No. I just started a little bit ago actually. How was breakfast?"

"It was fine, thank you. Let us continue training now."

I nodded, going back into the stance that he showed me. Quickly he shook his head, "No, we are done with your stances for today. I want you to try some techniques with the blade."

"But, you, Aragorn, and Boromir all say slash said that before you start attacking, you learn the foundation."

"Normally I would agree, but seeing you attacking the dummy, you have potential. We also go back to the fact that we do not know how long you shall be here. Come now."

He took out his blade and began showing me how to thrust, parry, and lunge. After I got the hang of them, he took a step back and began observing me. He would occasionally tell me to fix my feet or the way my elbow was bent, and I steadily began receiving less and less of the remarks. I began to grow dark when I heard the singing. It started out softly and the volume soon grew, though the gentle feeling was still there. I closed my eyes and recognized the language.

"Haldir."

"Yes?"

"What are they singing about?"

"They are singing about your fallen comrade, Mithrandir."

"What are they saying about him?"

Haldir took a breath and began singing softly with them.

"Mithrandir, Mithrandir, O Pilgrim Grey. No more you will wander the world green. Your journey in darkness stopped. The bonds cut, the spirit broken, the Flame of Anor has left this World. Great light has gone ou-"

My sobs stopped his singing. Quickly I rubbed hard at my eyes, trying to stop the tears. I felt a pair of hand grab my shoulders and rub them.

"It has been a long day. I will bring you back to your camp."

I nodded, quickly sucking in air in short bursts as he led me through the trees. By the time we reached back to camp, my eyes burned and I felt tired. Quietly I sat on one of the mats and took out the cloth that I packed food in earlier. Taking out an apple, I started eating it. Guilt filled me as I thought about the fact that I hadn't even thought about Gandalf since our first night here. Sighing, I sat aside the apple. I stared at the ground listening to the soft humming coming from around. My eyes began to feel heavy and I feel asleep.

The next morning, I woke up on my own without anyone shaking me awake. Everyone else was already up, and the sun was out.

"What time is it," I asked, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

"Adie," Pippin and Merry yelled in unison. They rushed over and sat by me. Before they began speaking, though, Aragorn came over.

"It is about eight in the morning. Haldir came by earlier and asked me to tell you that he had to go scouting today for the Lady of the Light. He also wanted me to tell you that he is sorry for canceling on you, but it is for the best."

"Okay then. Thank you Aragorn."

He nodded his head and left. Merry and Pippin were practically bouncing on the tips of their toes. They both held giant, Cheshire Cat like smiles on their faces.

"So, you don't fancy Haldir now do you," Merry said first.

"Yes, I do not fancy Haldir… What does fancy mean anyway?"

"Fancy means you like him!"

"Well then… yes I like him as a friend I guess. Maybe an annoying older brother at times, but as a friend."

"No, that isn't the same as fancying! When you fancy someone you want to start courting them," Merry said, looking shocked that I didn't know what that was.

"Okay. Just one more question."

"What is it Adie?"

"What does courting mean?"

I heard chuckles from behind me and saw Boromir and Gimli behind us. When they caught us looking at them, they tried to stifle their laughter, but it failed. Their laughs grew louder even.

"What's so funny?"

"Your naivety," answered Boromir, "it is, to be honest, endearing. Little ones, the topic of that discussion may best be elaborated if she was with other females."

"Well, before that happens, can someone please tell me what 'courting' is?"

"Courting is when you like someone considerably," started Frodo, as he came into the clearing with Sam at his side, "Maybe to the extent that you would wish to marry them someday. It is like the in-between period where the couple gets to know each other better and to see if they're compatible."

"_Ohh so it's dating_," I thought, nodding.

We started talking about different things for a couple more hours. Pippin and Merry were in the middle of one of the many "then-we-got-in-trouble" stories when suddenly…

"Oh Adela, it is so wonderful," I heard voice say as I was somewhat taken to the ground by a body.

"Wh-What," I asked, looking to see Nátulcien above me, smiling brightly. I heard a light giggle from above and saw Ránëwén looking at us.

"The Lady Galadriel said that the banquet is going to be held tonight!"

"No one told us that there was going to be a banquet," Boromir said, looking at the two elves.

"Someone should have told you. It has been the talk of the woods!"

"Only for us females, Nátulcien," Ránëwén said, helping her friend off of me.

"I guess so. Do you know any Elvish dances," Natulcien jumped excitedly at Boromir, and a newly entered Legolas and Aragorn.

"I know a few because of my adoptive father," Aragorn said. My ears perked at the word 'adoptive'. I looked over at Aragorn and drifted through my thoughts.

"_So he is adopted too? I wonder when he found out. I wonder how he felt when he found out. I wonder if how I re-acted was normal. Would he be able to help me if I was able to tell him who I really was?_"

"-ela. Adela!"

I jumped and looked up at my new friends. Ránëwén was calling my name. When she noticed I was paying attention she smiled slightly.

"Are you feeling alright?"

"Yes, I was just… spacing out."

She nodded a little, "Well, do you know any Elvish dances?"

"Umm… what will happen if I say 'no'?"

"Then we shall teach you of course," Nátulcien said enthusiastically.

"Alright then, I do not know any Elvish dances."

"_Or any dance really_," I thought.

"Then we must hurry! We must have enough time to teach you and get you ready!"

Ránëwén looked to Boromir and Aragorn, "Nátulcien and I will be your partners. Prince Legolas, would you partner up with Adela?"

Legolas was holding his bow. As he was strapping a quiver to his back he replied, "I wish to go practice my shooting-"

"That is very unfortunate. Do you think Rumil will be available," Nátulcien finished, turning to Ránëwén.

"But I suppose I can spare some time to help you teach," Legolas said, putting down his quiver and bow. Aragorn started chuckling a little bit, along with Boromir. Boromir bent his head down to whisper in Aragorn's ear and Aragorn nodded his head. I felt a small tap on my shoulder and looked to see Legolas.

"The faster we finish, the quicker I can go practice. Come now."

Ránëwén helped us set up. She positioned my arms one Legolas. One was on his shoulder while the other was in his hand. Before she went back to Aragorn she told me, "Just follow him. That is all you have to do. Where he goes you go."

I nodded my head and then looked at Legolas. We were silent until we heard Ránëwén counting off.

"One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four."

Legolas pulled me forward and I stepped on his toes. I quickly murmured an apology as we continued. I stepped on his feet three more times before going into hysteria.

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry!"

Finally he just stood still, "Calm down. Relax. Dancing is not about thinking it is about feeling."

Slowly I nodded, not really understanding what he meant. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. After I did that a few times Legolas began moving. I stepped on his feet less and just let him lead me through the steps After Ránëwén thought we had that dance down, she had us move onto a different dance. It continued like that for a couple hours. I was looking at my feet until I felt comfortable enough to look up at Legolas. We our eyes met, I swear I almost stopped in my tracks. His eyes were so blue. They were looking at me and my heart began kicking my ribcage. My body started trembling and I thought that I was going to faint, until Nátulcien saved me.

"We all should go get ready now," she said excitedly, curtsying to Boromir. She and Ránëwén went to go over to the steps.

"Adela, I have some ideas I would like to try. Would that be alright," Ranewen asked.

"Y-Yes, it would be," I said, my heart beating wildly. I started to go follow her but I still felt Legolas's hand on mine. I turned to look at him and our eyes made contact again. Slowly he raised my hand and kissed it lightly. Quickly, he turned and walked away.

I stayed froze in my spot until I remembered that I had to go get ready. Rapidly I turned and hurried up the steps.

"_Well_," I thought nonchalantly, trying to take my mind off of Legolas, "_that could have been worse. Wonder what we're going to have to eat._"

* * *

**A/N: This * and this ** were put there because, they are not the proper ages. The only one who has the right age is Pippin. Frodo was actually 50 when the Lord of the Rings took place and Sam was 39 while Merry was 37. ALSOOOOOOO I have a tumblr. It is .com (slash) blog (slash) fangirlinoverdrive (without the spaces and with . and /) there is a video posted that I would love if you all would watch and I will be posting stuff about my fanfic there (like when I should be able to update, maybe post some videos explaining how I got this idea for it or explaining characters.) and it would be a great way to interact with you guys so you can get to know me better and I can get to know you better. Anyway, THANK YOU FOR 90 REVIEWS! It is amazing and wonderful and I didn't expect this fic to be so popular. Review!**


	16. Chapter 15

**A/N: I hated this chapter. I hate this chapter soo much. I had no clue what to do with it even though I wanted it to happen. It cause so much procrastination and writer's block and hate, I'm am soooo happy to be back on the script the next couple of chapters. And the fact that on the top it says 100 Reviewssssssssss! Yay! Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

After we were dressed, Nátulcien and Ránëwén dragged me to where the banquet was being held. It was a big circular hall that was mostly open except for the pillars that were placed around it. Some types of lights were wrapped around the pillars and the trees above us glowed, illuminating the whole place. Already it was being filled with people and laughter and music. My new friends quickly found people they knew, leaving me alone. I scanned the room trying to find something to do or someone I knew. Finally I spotted tables that held food.

"Where there is food, there are Hobbits and Gimli," I thought, making my way past the elves that were gathering. When I reached the long tables containing the food, sure enough there was Gimli drinking and eating. Around him were the Hobbits who were talking in between bites. Merry looked up and spotted me coming their way. He reached up his hand and waved, drawing the others attention towards me. I waved back, standing at the end of the table.

"Hello Adela. You look pretty tonight," Merry said smiling brightly at me. I replied with a quick thanks as I looked down at my dress. It was in the same style as the blue one I was wearing before, but this one was white and it showed my shoulders. There weren't any accessories added to it, but I had my hair hanging down, which blocked some of the skin that was shown at the top.

"Where are the others," I asked, not seeing Aragorn, Legolas, or Boromir in sight.

"They were back at camp the last time I saw them. Seemed to be talking about something," Merry answered. I nodded taking a seat by them. Pippin handed me a plate of food from his seat beside Merry.

"The food here is delicious! Here eat some!"

I smiled at him and took the plate. It was filled with small portions of meats, breads, vegetables, and fruits. Grabbing at the meat, I ate it in a couple large bits.

"Aye lassie, if you keep eating like that the food will go down the wrong way. It'd be a waste of food if that happened."

Swallowing hard I replied, "It makes me so happy to see how much you care about my safe being, Gimli."

We started laughing when a set of hands covered my eyes. I heard a voice say, "Guess who."

"I don't know. Who is it," I asked taking the hands off of my face. I looked up to see Rumil and Orophin smile down at me. I waved at them slightly, confused as to why they were standing behind me.

"Hi."

"Hello," Rumil said answering me, "What are you doing here eating? Shouldn't you be out dancing and socializing, perhaps finding a strong handsome ellon to dance with?"

"Oh I would. Would you care to introduce me to one," I asked, teasing Rumil. He just smiled and laughed. Our conversation continued until I saw Frodo stand.

"Aragorn! Where were you?"

"We were discussing some matters."

I turned towards the leader of our group, "What were you discussing?"

"We were discussing when we were going to leave."

"When are we leaving," Pippin asked.

"The day after tomorrow is what we are planning for."

"Sounds fun," I said, taking a bite of the meat on my plate. I focused on the food in front of me, locking the topic of Legolas in a cage deep inside my head. Then a sudden, very random thought occurred to me.

"_Doesn't Rumil seem to act a lot like Haru_," the voice inside my head pointed out. My eating slowed and I looked at Rumil. His posture was very care-free and he seemed to be enjoying himself. The way his hair fell in front of his eyes was very similar too. Quickly I looked back on my memories of him. He acted in a very hyper-active, older brother type way and I teased him like I had known him for a long time. Maybe my mind was subconsciously making the connection before the idea even occurred to me…

I quickly went back to eating my food before I was caught staring at the elf for too long. Soon after, Merry put a cup in front of my face. It had a grapey-flowery smell and it made my mouth water.

"What is this Merry?"

"It's wine we got from the elves. Try it."

I was about to take a sip from the cup when it was pulled from my hands. I looked up to see Legolas holding the cup and looking down at me, "I suggest that you do not drink this."

"And why's that?"

"Because you are not allowed to have any of it."

"You do know that by making it 'forbidden' for me to drink that, it just makes me want to drink it even more. It's teenage logic. Rebellion is our power."

I reached up to take the drink back from him, but he moved his hand, raising the glass above his head. Standing up, I made another grab for it, but I was too short. Quietly I sat down, pretending that I gave up. I felt him move away, but he didn't put the glass down. Quickly I looked to see if he was anywhere nearby. I didn't see him, so I scooted next to Merry.

"Merry," I said sweetly.

"Yes Adie?"

"I was wondering if I could get a sip from your cup. Legolas took mine."

"Sure," he said as he passed me his cup. I thanked him. As fast as I could without spilling any of the liquid, I pressed the edge of the cup to my lips. Sadly that was the only thing that happened. Aragorn pulled the cup back and returned it to Merry.

"Legolas was right about you not having any of the elves' wine. It has too much alcohol for us to handle."

"Then why can the Hobbits drink it?"

"Because they have a higher tolerance for alcohol."

"But I wanted to try some," I said, pouting slightly. Aragorn looked at me smiling softly.

"I once had some of their wine when I was a young boy."

"What happened?"

"Legolas and I went into the kitchens and were able to smuggle some wine. We were able to get two bottles, so we split the bottles between the two of us."

"And you got drunk and you're using this story to tell me why I should never ever drink?"

"Yes, but I ended up telling Legolas things that I did not want anyone to know."

My mind immediately shot to the fact that I was supposed to keep my whole 'hey-I'm-not-from-this-world' thing a secret. I quickly shoved food into my mouth. When I finally swallowed it I told Aragorn that I wasn't going to touch it. That was when I felt a light hand rest on my shoulder. Looking up, I saw Galadriel standing above me. That was when I noticed that Aragorn, Orophin, and the others stood.

"Hello Adela."

"Hello," then there was a jab in my side from where Rumil was. "My lady," I finished as a question, not exactly sure. Galadriel smiled down at me and turned towards my companions.

"I was hoping that I could take Adela away from you. I wish to speak with her."

"That is alright, milady."

She led me to a secluded spot in a garden about 15 minutes away from the banquet.

"I heard that you were going to resume your travels the day after tomorrow."

"That's what we hope for. Is that why you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes it is. I was hoping we could finish talking about your world."

"Sure. What do you want to know about now?"

"I want to know about the borders of your world."

"Well, we have seven major borders which we call continents, which are really big pieces of land. People only inhabit six of them though, because the seventh is too cold for us. A lot of us also have family members in each of these different sections."

"What is your continent called?"

"North America."

And that was sort of how the conversation went for the next hour or so. After trying to tell her as much as I could about my world, she said that I could return to the party if I wanted to. I smiled and turned, but before I walked out I ran back to her. Quickly I gave her a hug.

"Thank you. I'll miss you when we leave."

I felt her hand stroke my hair as she hugged me back, "I shall miss you too child."

I went back to the party once I was done saying bye to her. When I entered the hall, there were a lot of people dancing. Among the crowd I saw Aragorn, Boromir, and the Hobbits dancing. Legolas was leaning up against a pillar talking to Orophin and Rumil while Gimli was indulging in desert next to them. Legolas's head lifted up and he saw me. I smiled and went to go sit by them. I guess parties aren't so bad after all.

* * *

**A/N: Sooo I was late with this chapter. Very very very late... but at least I updated right? ^^" But honestly, you should feel lucky I didn't re-write the last chapter so I could skip this one. It almost drove me to tears because I had no idea where to go... BUT! You should still totally Review!**


	17. Chapter 16

**A/N: The reason why i was so late on this was because 1) since last month I have been doing a ton load of packing and moving into a new house and 2) then I got really sick and I lost my voice xD. I shall not give up on this story! I swear! Also! Saren, I'm also working on your one-shot, but it may take a little bit, sorry about that :/ ANYWAY! Enjoy!**

* * *

Our last day there consisted of brutal sword training from Haldir. He said that since we didn't have any desired amount of time to make sure I could defend myself, he would cram every single thing there is to know about it into my head. By the next morning when I woke up, I forgot a lot of stuff.

Right now, I was with the other elves and helping pack our supplies. I was in the middle of securing a bag on one of our boats when I saw Pippin and Merry eating. Curious, I went over.

"What are you eating?"

The both shrugged. "It's delicious though," Pippin finished. Merry held out a piece for me. I took it and bite out of the corner. My already, comfortably full stomach started to hurt. I handed the bread back to him and gripped my stomach.

"Adela, are you okay?"

"Just fine. I-I'm just not feeling well after eating that. How much have you guys eaten of it?"

Legolas made his way towards us, carrying a couple packs. He lifted one up and took out a piece of the bread I ate earlier.

"Lembas, Elvish waybread," he said, taking a bite out of it, "One small bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown Man."

He placed the bread back into the pack and left to get more packs. Merry turned to Pip, getting back to my question.

"How many did you eat?"

"Four."

Merry nodded, looking up at me slightly guilty. I shrugged, "You don't have to look guilty to me. It's the Elves you might have to worry about."

Once the packs were all in the boats, we lined up in front of them. Aragorn headed towards us last, finishing a conversation with Galadriel's husband, Celeborn. Celeborn then proceeded to give a speech.

"Never before have we clad strangers in the garb of our own people," he started as other elves placed cloaks around us. They had a green and silver leaf pinned to each one.

Lord Celeborn continued, "May these cloaks help shield you from unfriendly eyes. Every league you travel south, the danger will increase. Mordor Orcs now hold the eastern shore of the Anduin. Nor will you find safety on the western bank."

Galadriel then walked up to Legolas, another elf trailing behind her. She reached out her hand towards the other elf, who then placed a bow within her hands. "My gift for you, Legolas, is a bow of the Galadhrim. Worthy of the skill of our woodland kin," she said as she handed Legolas the bow.

He held the bow, quickly testing it. His face lit up like a child's on Christmas day. Quickly, he thanked her. She moved along down our line. Merry and Pippin were give daggers. She said that their daggers had already seen service in battle. Pippin looked up to her, fear evident in his eyes. "Do not fear, young Peregrin Took," she said, consoling him, "You will find your courage."

She moved on to Samwise, giving him a rope. He looked towards Pippin and Merry, asking her about another dagger for him. Galadriel smiled towards the gardener and moved onto Frodo. She handed him an oddly shaped bottle.

"May it be a light for you in dark places, when all other lights go out," the she turned to Gimli, "And what gift would a Dwarf ask of the Elves?"

"Nothing," Gimli replied quickly. His face then looked up towards her.

"Except to look upon the lady of the Galadhrim one last time for she is more fair than all the jewels beneath the earth."

Galadriel smiled, laughing slightly. Her face seemed to light up the whole river-side. Gimli quickly looked down, embarrassed. He then seemed to have an idea.

"Actually... There was one thing. No, no, I couldn't. It's quite impossible. Stupid to ask."

The Lady leaned her head down as Gimli whispered to her what he wanted. She smiled and plucked three hairs from her head, handing them to Gimli. His face was bright with happiness and surprise. If I didn't know any better, I'd say Gimli was close to tears.

Aragorn stood next to me as Galadriel went to him next, "I have nothing greater to give than the gift you already bear."

She lightly touched the necklace that he has been wearing around his neck for the past several months. The two of them held a quick conversation in Elvish. Finally she turned to me. She held a bright smile and softly touched my head.

"For you child," she said, reaching into her gown, "is this."

She took out a long dagger. The hilt had vines engraved on it with flowers appearing every now and again. It was inside a sheath that was held together by leather, creating criss-crosses over it. Cautiously I took it, holding it lightly in my hands. Silently, I unsheathed it. The blade seemed to glow in the early morning light. For such a dangerous weapon, it was a beautiful sight to behold.

"Thank you, my lady," I said, feeling slightly choked up.

"You can place in inside your boot. It will keep it hidden until you need to use it."

She was about to turn away when I grabbed onto her dress. Slightly shocked, she looked back towards me. Breathing deeply I said, "I'm really going to miss you."

Galadriel reached out her hand and touched my cheek lightly. She smiled softly as she took me into her arms. I hugged her back tightly, wishing that I could stay with someone who knew me. I was scared of what was going to happen. I didn't want to go through this alone.

"There will be a time when the others will know," she whispered into my ear. Squeezing me one last time she let me go.

We entered the boats shortly after. Sam and Frodo were riding with Aragorn and Pippin and Merry were with Boromir. That left me with Gimli and Legolas. We traveled down the river at a some-what leisurely pace. What I mean by some-what is that the river was moving fast while we were trying to slow down our boats a little so we still had some control. It took a while, but there was finally a rhythm that everyone started to follow that made things easier. A silence over came our group as we traveled.

"So…"

"What is it Adie," Pippin asked from the other boat.

"Not sure. I was just saying 'so' because it was quiet."

"Okay then."

After that, the silence still grew. No one bothered to try to start conversation, and I was too lazy to try again. When night fell, we paddled towards to shore to make camp. That was how the next few nights went. Every night Boromir, Aragorn, and Legolas would take turns staying on watch. On the third night, Boromir and Aragorn had a bit of a fight and Sam tried in vain to make Frodo eat some food. The next day, as we were floating down the river, giant statues appeared standing at both sides of a waterfall.

"_Don't blink, don't blink, don't blink, don't blink. Blink and your dea-_"

"-to look upon the old kings… my kin," I heard Aragorn say, pulling myself from my thoughts.

We all began going to the shore again. Aragorn then explained our next course of action, "We cross the lake at nightfall, hide the boats and continue on foot ... we approach Mordor from the North."

Gimli soon trampled on all our spirits. After hearing about impassable labyrinths and razor sharp rocks, I finally just stopped listening. What is the point of trying to go on a quest to save the world if you're going to make everyone too scared to continue on? I sat down, spacing out, until I heard possibly the most terrifying sentence ever.

"Where's Frodo?"

My caretaker was gone along with Boromir. Aragorn had everyone split up to search for our missing friends. I followed Pippin and Merry through the woods, trying to catch the dark, curly hair of Frodo. We looked around until we heard loud footsteps. Looking up, we saw these… hideous, disgusting creatures running. Merry and Pippin pulled me down into a hiding space before they could see us. That was when we saw Frodo right across the path from us.

"Frodo! Hide here, quick," Merry whispered urgently. As much as I hated to admit it, a part of me didn't understand what was going on, and that scared me more than anything.

Merry and Frodo's eyes met. Then I quietly heard Merry saying that Frodo was leaving.

"No," Pippin whispered loudly. He stood trying to stop his friend, but Merry stopped him. Then a loud cry sounded. Merry quickly told Frodo to go and then he and Pippin did one of the bravest things I had ever seen. They began shouting at the creatures and drawing their attention away from Frodo. I stood trying to follow their example.

"It's working," Pippin cried out excitedly.

"I know it's working! Run!"

Our feet began to pound on the ground. The loud footsteps followed, slowly gaining in volume. Suddenly more of them came out from in front of us. Then Boromir came, killing one of the monsters. Quickly, he took a horn and blew into it three times, creating a loud echoing sound then he began fighting again.

"Run," he yelled at us when he could. We began running, but then I saw something that tore a scream out of me. Boromir got shot with an arrow. He stood right back up and began fighting again. I saw one of the creatures start aiming at him.

"B-Boromir," I whispered at first, but then grew louder, "Boromir! Boromir look out!"

I felt the pressure of hands around my waist when Boromir was hit by the second arrow. Still screaming, I struggled against that hands that held me. My body was then thrown over a nasty black and purple shoulder. Finally Boromir was shot with one last arrow. His body fell to the ground. Tears blurred my vision.

"Boromir," I screamed, while being carried away, "Boromir, no! Please get up! Boromir! Boro-"

Then everything went black.

* * *

**A/N: Review! ^^"**


	18. Chapter 17

**A/N: This chapter is a tad bit heavy, but I'm going to explain all that in the bottom A/N so please read that. Also the language is a bit more out there. Just a heads up. Enjoy.**

_Thoughts look like this_

* * *

I was jolted awake by the pounding of footsteps. My eyes opened to the sight of green and brown grass being trampled on by creatures around me. Later, not really sure when, but later the thing that was carrying me gave to one of his comrades. First, I was thrown towards Thing 2. After I was actually caught, I had a sickening feeling that if that didn't actually happen, they probably would have trampled me into the ground. Before I was able to get a grotesque picture of a flattened, barely recognizable body of mine, I caught sight of Pippin. And Merry.

At the sight of Merry, I tensed up, biting my cheek to keep me from crying out. He had a giant gash on his head and his head was knocking repeatedly on the creature that was carrying him. Pippin, unlike me, was yelling at the top of his lungs to wake Merry up. My heart broke and my mind thought of the first useless, unnecessary memory that I could've used at this time.

Home.

We abruptly stopped, and Thing 2 adjusted me so he was giving me a piggyback ride. Other ugly beasts came into our views.

"You're late. Our master grows impatient. He wants the Shire-rats now."

"I don't take orders from Orc-maggots."

"_So, if those things are Orc-maggots, then what are these things?_"

I was pulled from my thoughts quickly, "And what's this you have here? A girl of man. She's obviously a child. Why do you have her?"

The leader quickly brushed off the question, "Saruman will have his prize. We will deliver them."

Pippin once more tried to wake Merry up. His head rolled to the side, showing the blood trailing down his face. It didn't look like he was going to wake up soon. In frenzy, Pippin looked around, spotting a thing drinking from a flask.

"My friend is sick," Pippin said to It as It turned to growl at him, "He needs water. Please!"

The leader came up to us. He had a malicious glint in his eyes that made me sick to my stomach. "_Pippin_," I thought, slightly trembling from the fear that I suddenly felt in the pit of my stomach, _"You shouldn't have said that."_

"Sick, is he? Give him some medicine, boys," the Thing Leader called out. They pulled Merry's head back, opening his mouth and poured the liquid all into his mouth. Merry began coughing while he was chocking on the blood-red liquid.

"Stop it!"

"Stop," Pippin and I cried out.

"Can't take his draught," laughed the Leader.

Pip's reign of courage continued, while mine ended after 'stop', "Leave him alone!"

"Why? You want some?"

Pippin's mouth stayed shut, fear over-powering his courage and his determination to save his friend.

"Then keep your mouth shut," he said, and then turned to me, "Both of you."

After Thing Leader left, Pippin turned to Merry again, whispering his name. This time he answered.

"Hello Pip. Hi Adie."

My heart broke at the sound of Merry's voice. I bit my tongue as hard as I could, the taste of blood filling my mouth. I had to do it or I would've started to cry. Cry about home, and Merry, and Boromir, and the fact that we were all going to die, but I couldn't. My pride couldn't handle crying in front of these things and giving them the satisfaction that they broke me. I wouldn't allow it.

"You're hurt," I heard Pippin carry on.

Merry did his best to smile, "I'm fine. It was just an act."

"An act?"

"See? Fooled you, too."

His eyes flickered between me and Pip, "Don't worry about me, Pippin. Same goes for you Adie."

Through the bonds on my hands, I took one hand and started digging my nails into my flesh. Anything, just anything to get rid of the pain of being a hopeless case in saving my friends. Any pain just to distract me from the pain of seeing Merry in such a state. There was a conversation being held between the disgusting, terrible creatures. Almost as if cotton balls were shoved into my ears, I heard a distant 'let's move'. As Thing 2 and all the other Things began moving, I buried my head into the back of Thing 2's shirt.

"_Please God, or anyone. Please don't let them see me cry. Please…_"

**-Legolas's POV-**

We stopped as Aragorn checked the ground for footsteps. This was the first time we've stopped in three days, and the break allowed me time to think. Think back to when our friend Boromir died. His death felt like more than three days ago. It almost felt like years. It felt like years since I last saw Adela. I gripped the straps to her bag thinking back to when we started following them.

Boromir was lying in Aragorn's arms.

"They took the little ones."

That one sentence was enough to freeze me. A part of me wanted to believe that it was only Peregrin and Meriadoc that he was talking about, but I knew better. My attention was drawn back towards the scene in front of me. Aragorn took Boromir's sword and placed it in his hands. The dying man's fingers gripped the hilt and looked up to the future king.

"I would have followed you, my brother… my Captain, my King."

With a final breath, he died. Aragorn lightly kissed his brow and whispered a prayer to his soul. Standing, he bowed his head to look at the body of our friend, "They will look for his coming from the White Tower ...but he will not return."

I helped Aragorn as we took Boromir's body back to our camp. We placed him in one of our boats, repositioning his hands so that they were still holding his sword in front of him. Gimli placed his shield above his head, saying that a sword means nothing without a shield to use. Before we pushed the boat into the water, Aragorn took the broken Horn of Gondor and placed it beside our fallen comrade. We watched as the boat continued down the river and finally fell over the falls. I took our last boat and began to push it into the water.

"If we are quick, we will catch Frodo and Sam by nightfall," I said, ignoring the guilty that ate at me. When I saw that our leader wasn't moving, I stopped. A sense of relief started to battle the guilt.

"You mean not to follow them…"

"Frodo's fate is no longer in our hands."

Gimli huffed, disappointment filling his voice, "Then is has all been in vain… The Fellowship has failed."

"Not if we hold true to each other. We will not abandon Merry, Pippin, or Adela to torment and death, not while we have strength left. Leave all that can be spared behind. We travel light."

Quickly, I went to grab some food supplies. As I was about to put the supplies into one of our packs, something bright caught my eye. It was Adela's pack. Making an impulsive choice, I put the food into her bag, not touching any of the other items in there. After I put the pack on, I walked over to Aragorn.

"Let's hunt some orc."

I snapped back to the present, seeing Aragorn standing, "They must've caught our scent. Hurry!"

We began running again. My mood was lightened by knowing they caught our scent. If they caught our scent, then their pace has quickened. If their pace has quickened, we must be close to the others.

"Come one Gimli," I called over my shoulder. The dwarf began complaining about how we've had no rest or food. Still he continued to run and within the next hour we found something that brought on even more hope.

Aragorn knelt on the ground, and picked up a small brooch. A small brooch with the Leaf of Lothlórien. Our leader smiled, "Not idly do the leaves of Lórien fall."

"They may yet be alive," I said, relief flooding through the rest of my body.

"_Do not hold your hopes too high_," my voice in my head told me. Aragorn began running again, but stopped a little way down.

"Less than a day ahead of us. Come!"

My energy shot to the sky."Come, Gimli! We are gaining on them," I shouted, following Aragorn.

We entered Rohan. The hills were colored green, brown, and yellow, informing us of their life. Spring would soon begin. I ran ahead, seeing if I could find the pack or Uruk-hai over the hills.

"Rohan. Home of the Horse-lords. There's something strange at work here. Some evil gives speed to these creatures. Sets its will against us," Aragorn's voice called over to me, "Legolas, what do you Elf eyes see?"

I caught sight of the Uruks and my heart stopped, "The Uruks turn northeast. They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard!"

"Saruman," I caught Aragorn saying. Thinking that we were taking too long, I began running. Sometime while we were running, I believe I heard footsteps behind me, but my mind was too pre-occupied to concern myself with it.

"_Oh Valar, please let them be safe. Please let her be safe._"

**-Wynter/Adela's POV-**

When night fell that day, I didn't know what to expect. I didn't even have the chance to ask how long I was out for. Although, it didn't seem like this night was a normal night. I was thrown down onto the ground a few feet away from Pippin and Merry. All the Things around us sat and one of them vocalized their discomfort, "We're not going no further till we've had a breather."

"Get a fire going," the Thing Leader called. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Pippin move closer to Merry. Moving as slow as I could so I wouldn't be noticed, I moved until the distance between us was cut in half. When I stopped, I heard some of their conversation.

"-made a mistake leaving the Shire, Pip."

Pippin chuckled a little bit at that. Then there was a soft groaning from behind us. I whipped my head around, terrified about what I was going to find. All that was there, though, was forest. A dark, tall, green forest. Pip turned to Merry and asked if he heard the groaning.

Merry looked to the forest, too, and I swear he smiled.

"It's the trees."

I mentally face palmed, "_I highly doubt Merry's been smoking anything since we got caught. What's with the people here thinking that inanimate things can do human things?_"

Pippin seemed to share my sentiments, "What?"

"Do you remember the Old Forest, on the borders of Buckland? Folk used to say there was something in the water that made the trees grow tall...and come alive."

"Alive?"

"Trees that could whisper, talk to each other, even move."

Suddenly, one of the Things threw a piece of bread on the ground, "I'm starving. We ain't had nothing but maggoty bread for three stinking days."

Some of the others around him nodded their heads in agreement. "Yeah! Why can't we have some meat?!"

Then the Orc-maggot that spoke out looked over to us.

"What about them? They're fresh."

"They're not for eating," one of Things said as I thanked god for that ugly little head on his body. Then it ended. Another one of the Things picked up Pippin and Merry and moved them father away. And left me where I was.

"What about the girl then? She unnecessary weight."

I shut my eyes and took deep breaths. The fact that I could die at this very moment scared me. I was alone, and scared, and I had no way to defend myself, except for a knife in my boot that I couldn't even get.

"Not her either. She's a very good tool for getting the Halflings to co-operate."

"Then what about their legs? They don't need those. They look taste. Especially all the meat on the girl's."

I tensed up. The Orc-maggot tried to reach out to Pippin and Merry, when one of the Things shoved him back.

"Get back, scum!"

All of the other Orc-maggots got up. Some of them had their weapons drawn. There was obviously some rank fighting about to go down.

"The prisoners go to Saruman. Alive and unspoiled."

"Alive? Why alive? Do they give good sport," he asked, looking all three of us over.

"They have something. An Elvish weapon. The master wants it for the war."

"_Oh my gods, it's the Ring,_" I thought as I looked towards Pippin and Merry. They seemed to have come to the same conclusion as me and a triumphant gleam started shining in Merry's eyes. Pippin whispered to Merry, but Merry quickly hushed him. He then made eye contact with me and motioned with his eyes for me to look back. I slowly turned my head forward to not cause suspicion. I was already a meat cow. I didn't want to die either.

"Just a mouth full. A bit of the flank," the annoying Orc-maggot said again. The Thing took out his sword and then quickly cut of its head.

"Looks like meat's back on the menu, boys."

I wanted to look away from these monsters ripping apart the dead carcass. I could hear my head yelling at me to look away, but my body was frozen with fear. When I could finally control my body again I shut my eyes tightly, trying to fight off tears again. Then came screaming. Loud, blood curdling screaming from the pack.

My eyes shot open to see horses riding in with warriors on top. They stabbed and cut and killed anything they could get their hands on. I felt something grab me and start to carry me. Thing 2 from earlier was trying to take me away. I don't really know why, but a rage took over me.

"_I have help now. I'm not going to let you take me so easy._"

Taking in a deep breath, I screamed as high and as loud as I could. Which seemed to have worked because a few of the soldiers near us saw Thing 2. The one in front quickly galloped over taking his spear. As he got closer, Thing 2 started to run. The noise of the battle got quieter and my heart fell. This damn bastard got me.

**_FUSHHH-INK_**

I felt something warm and wet on my face. Cautiously looking up, I saw Thing 2 connected to the tree in front of us by the soldier's spear through his head. I felt my body begin to slip from Thing 2's lifeless hands. Tightly I shut my eyes, awaiting a hard impact. But it never came.

Instead I felt big, strong hands take me by the waist and set me down.

"Are you alright?"

I looked up to see the face of a handsome man. He had the brightest brown eyes I had ever seen. His dirty blonde hair glowed as the moonlight touched it. Even with all the dirt on his face, you could tell that he could've been a prince.

"I said are you alright?"

I snapped out of my thoughts, "For the most part, I-I guess. Physically, yes I feel fine. Emotional and Mentally? Maybe not so much."

He nodded his head and held out his hand to help me up.

"I'm not sure if you um noticed or not, but I'm sort of tied up."

His eyes widened slightly and he looked down embarrassed, "I-I am sorry. I forgot."

I smiled a bit, "I have a knife in my left boot. You can use it to untie me."

He nodded, kneeling down again. Slowly his hand reached out to get my knife, but then he stopped. Once more he tried, but again hesitated.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Why wouldn't I be?"

"It's just. I'm not a member of your family or your betrothed. Isn't this too inappropriate?"

"I wouldn't know. I'm not from around here. Just take the knife and get me out of the rope though, please?"

He reached out and took my knife from my boot. From where I was sitting, I did my best to turn around to make cutting it easier.

"What is your name," he asked as the ropes broke one by one.

"Adela. I'm Adela."

"Where is it that you hail from Adela?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean just a few months ago I was found in a river. No memory of who I was. So I became Adela."

He made an "hmm" sound, saying that he understood.

"On another note, what's your name? People don't usually go out of their way to save someone they don't know," I said.

"_Of course they do you idiot_," I mentally slapped myself.

"I am Pr-… My name is Éomer."

"Well then, Éomer it is good to make you acquaintance."

"_When the hell did you start talking like you were in a Jane Austen book_," my inner voice chided at me again.

"_Shut up will you?!_"

"The ropes are cut," Éomer said, standing.

"Thank you."

I stood up and then turned around. He handed my knife back to me and I put it back into its sheath. Then it became sort of awkward. I looked down to the ground, thinking about where I was going to go. The sky was starting to lighten up and a terrible stench filled the air.

"_Did those creatures really travel most of the night with us?_"

"Would you like to travel with us?"

My head shot up, "What?"

"Well, I assume that you have nowhere else to so until you get your memory back or…"

"_You should probably take his offer_," my inner voice started, "_You don't know where Aragorn or the others are. You could probably find them when you're with him_."

Then something occurred to me which should've been my main priority.

"Pippin! Merry!"

I started running back to the camp only to find the most heart shattering thing ever. They were burning the corpses. Quickly I ran over to one of the soldiers.

"Did you see two small males? They would've had big, hairy feet a-and-"

"I wouldn't know for sure. We all gathered up the bodies and most of men here are tired. They probably wouldn't have been able to make out a difference."

I looked over to the flame engulfed bodies. Pippin and Merry were in there. They were probably being burned alive right now. Unless they were killed before that. I could've done something. I should've been here to do something.

"_All because you were distracted by a guy._"

I dropped to my knees. At this point I couldn't do anything. I could cry or scream or even get angry at myself. Everything felt hollow.

"_I couldn't do anything to protect us and now they're dead. Pippin and Merry are dead._"

Through my fog, I felt someone place a hand on my shoulder. Looking up I saw Éomer with a helmet on.

"Come, we're going to ride out now."

He led me over to a white horse. A very tall white horse. Éomer gracefully mounted it as he looked down towards me. He placed his hand out in front of me and I took it, pulling myself onto the horse. I probably looked like a buffoon getting on, but at the moment I didn't care.

"Hold onto me or you'll fall off," my savior told me, taking my hands and placing them around his waist.

And then we rode off.

It was mid morning when something happened. I heard a familiar voice call out to us. Whipping my head back, I saw Aragorn with Gimli and Legolas. Eomer turned around riding back towards them. He slowed as we drew nearer and I did one of the most idiotic things ever.

I slid off the horse while it was still going.

My feet made a hard impact with the ground that made my ankles hurt, but I didn't care about that. I started running and when I got towards Aragorn, I threw my arms around his waist.

"A-Adela?"

I tightened my arms around his waist. Then I let go and hugged Gimli who was standing next to him. "Aye lass, it's good to see you too," he said as he hugged me back.

Finally I looked to Legolas and I saw that they didn't carry anything else except their weapons. And my bag. I hugged Legolas tightly. Slowly I took a shaky breath.

"Th-Thank you for bringing my bag."

"You are welcome Adela," he said as he hugged me back. My grip tightened slightly as I tried not to cry then and there, but then I remembered that Éomer and the others were around us. I let go of Legolas and stood by him. He gave me my backpack and I put it on, savoring the heaviness that was there.

"What business does an Elf," he started out bitterly, "A Man and a Dwarf have in the Riddermark? Speak quickly!"

"_Well, his personality just did a 180,_" the voice in my head supplied.

Gimli, being the ever so stubborn dwarf that he is, said, "Give me your name, horse-master, and I shall give you mine."

Then Éomer dismounted and moved to stand in front of Gimli, "I would cut off your head, beard and all, Master Dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground."

About a micro-second after that Legolas had and arrow notched and aimed at Éomer's head.

"You would die before your stroke fell."

The other soldiers aimed their spears at us. Aragorn held out his hand to stop Legolas. Then his diplomatic, heir-to-the-throne side came out.

"I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Glóin and Legolas of the Woodland Realm. We are friends of Rohan and of Théoden, your king."

"Théoden no longer recognizes friend from foe," Éomer said and then glanced over to me before taking off his helmet, "Not even his own kin."

"Gimli," I said, trying to get his attention.

"Aye lass?"

"You aren't related to anyone royal are you?"

"Not that I know of."

"Fantastic," I said apathetically, "You are now totally my new best friend."

"What do you have against royals Adie," Aragorn asked, obviously confused on how this had to do with anything. He also seemed curious and worried though.

"You all are intimidating and scary as hell when you're mad. Gimli is just a pretty chill guy in general," I answered, shrugging.

"What does 'chill guy' mean exactly?"

"Umm… Laid-back I guess you could say."

Aragorn started nodding the same way my mom did when I said something about Doctor Who that she had no clue what it was about. So the "I-have-no-clue-what-the-hell-you're-talking-about -but-I'll-nod-anyway" nod. Even Éomer looked at me oddly, but soon continued what he was saying.

"Saruman has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over these lands. My company are those loyal to Rohan. And for that, we are banished," he voice started to take an accusatory tone, "The White Wizard is cunning. He walks here and there, they say, as an old man hooded and cloaked. And everywhere, his spies slip past our nets."

"We are no spies. We track a party of Uruk-Hai westward across the plain. They have taken some of our friends captive. Adela here was a part of that group. Do you have the other two with you?"

Éomer looked at me guiltily. He must've figured out why I was on the ground this morning.

"The Uruks are destroyed. We slaughtered them during the night."

Gimli surged forward, "But there were two Hobbits. Did you see two Hobbits with them or near the lass?"

"They would be small. Only children to your eyes," Aragorn added desperately. My hands gripped my bag. The ground became fascinating again.

"We left none alive except for Adela here. We piled the carcasses and burned them."

"Dead," Gimli questioned, the shock evident in his voice.

"I am sorry," then he whistled, "Hasufel! Arod! May these horses bear you to better fortune than their former masters. Farewell."

Then I saw someone's shoes within my line of vision. Looking up, I saw Éomer looking down at me.

"I hope that we can meet again under better circumstances."

I nodded, afraid that if I said anything, I would break down. He placed his helmet back on his head and remounted his horse.

"Look for your friends. But do not trust to hope. It has forsaken these lands. We ride north!"

As the riders galloped away, Legolas turned towards me.

"Why didn't you do anything?"

"What do you mean," I asked, confused on what he could be referring to.

"Why didn't you try to protect them?"

Anger, sadness, and disappointment surged through me, "I couldn't do anything. I was knocked out for God knows how long and when I woke up, I was thrown to another Thing and It almost dropped me. I would be dead right now if it had dropped me. I was tied up. I had to sit by and wa-," the tears almost started to spill over, "I had to watch them almost kill Merry by forcing liquid down his throat. I had to see a sick and injured Merry lie to Pippin and me so we wouldn't worry."

Then the dam holding back my tears broke, but I didn't stop, "I h-had to stay there kn-knowing that if I even if I could get-t my knife, I would-dn't have been able to do a-anything else. I wouldn't hav-ve been able to get them out e-even if I had the mean-ns to," I held up my hand that had the scabbed crescent indents of my nails in it, "I had to phy-physically keep myself from ye-yelling or cr-crying and I was sc-scared. I was so... so… sca-ared. And right now, d-do you want to kn-know what I'm fe-eeling? Guilt. S-So much guilt a-and regret be… because if I was there… If that thing di-didn't take me and I-I was there…"

I pushed my hands into my eyes, taking several deep breaths. When I finally felt like I could talk again, everything felt hollow.

"Forget it. Let's just go. Please."

I felt a hand on my shoulder. Then I heard Aragorn's voice quietly whisper to me, "Shh, it's okay. Legolas is grieving. He shouldn't have taken it out on you, but he is doing what he can to block the pain."

I nodded, not really listening to his words.

"Come now. You'll ride with me."

* * *

**A/N: Like I said, this chapter was a little heavy, but that's because the second movie is maybe the darkest one. Honestly, everyone just feels so hopeless and everything is going against them, I felt like I had to show that through Adela's/Wynter's eyes. If you didn't really like how heavy this one was, though, I'm making it up to you. The next chapter has a couple wonderful surprises in store. I hope you like my long chapter! Review!**


	19. On That Note Chapter 18

**A/N: One of the things that has been planned since the beginning has come at last! For those of you who were sad at the last part, fear no longer (for now) for my surprise has come. Also slight warning for language. Enjoy.**

_This means someone is thinking..._

* * *

**-Third Person POV-**

The two males settled down onto their make-shift beds, looking up at the TV. Currently the scene playing involved two giant stone monsters throwing rocks at each other. A company of dwarves and a hobbit were staring up in awe at the giants in awe. The black haired man turned over to face his friend.

"Edmund, seriously what's bothering you?"

The chocolate-haired friend replied, "I told you it's nothing Haru."

"Edmund, I've been friends with you since we were five. I know better. What's up?"

"I said it's nothing, can we leave it at that?"

Haru's temper was beginning to grow, "No, we can't. You've been acting like this since I've got here. What. Is. Bothering. You."

Edmund remained silent as he stared up at the screen. After a few minutes of silence, he sighed, "You wouldn't understand if I told you."

"Try me."

"It's just… it's been so long since we last saw Wyn and this was the last thing we were talking to her about. Then mom and dad have been getting buddy-buddy with her mom. Her birth mom. You don't understand how that feels. You can't understand how that feels."

Haru's temper snapped, "You understand that she was like my sister, too, right? That she'd hang out with me as much as she hung out with you. She isn't just like family, Ed. She _IS_ family, like you are. I've lost a sister just as much as you have. Finish the movie if you want, but I'm going to sleep."

The black haired man turned away from the brunette and closed his blue eyes. A sigh came from his friend as he stood and turned off the DVD player and the TV. He turned his back so he was facing away from his friend also…

The two men woke up to find themselves in a black scene. Crystal blue eyes met amber ones as the two boys looked at each other.

"How are you here," they both asked at the same time. Their questions lay forgotten as something else caught their attention. Out from the distance came a bright light and a woman's voice resonated through the air.

"I apologize for the inconvenience, but it seems that I have made a mistake."

"What do you mean," Haru asked.

"It seems that I have sent you sister and friend, Wynter, to Middle-Earth rather than you two. Although, I heard her wish, it was granted before I could discern who wished for what. Both of your voices were so over-powering."

"What do you mean you sent her to Middle-Earth?! Are you trying to kill her," Edmund shouted out, taking his anger out at the dream.

"No, but I believe she has and will learn useful lessons from the past."

"What do you-"

"Go now."

And the darkness came again…

**-Haru's POV-**

I groaned, sitting up, "Hey Ed, I just had the craziest dream. We were in this dark place an-"

I opened my eyes. My clothes were different than the T-shirt and pajama pants that I slept in. Instead I was in a dark red tunic with black leggings and dark brown boots. The ground had changed from the comfortable white carpet in Ed's living room to green, yellow, and brown colored grass. There were also hills every now and again. Something felt familiar about this place though.

"Aw shit."

That wasn't a dream. That actually happened. Quickly running through landscapes in the Lord of the Rings movies I tried to find one that fit.

"_Can't be Rivendell or any place of the Elves. Dwarves all live underground. I could be near Minas Tirith, but their surrounded by flat la-_"

The sound of horses running caught my attention. There was a big group of them, carrying the flag of Rohan. Everything began to click together. Before I was able to decide to leave or not, though, they surrounded me.

"_Baby, I swear that it's Déjà vu_," I thought. Éomer, or who I assumed was Éomer, came to the head of the group.

"What are you doing within these lands?"

"I'm looking for my friend's sister," I said without thinking, "She's been missing for several months."

"I'm afraid that your search maybe in vain. Orcs have been traveling through these parts often."

"Then…," I said trying to think of something, "Let me travel with you. I may not have much skill with a sword-"

"_You're starting to dig your own grave_," I thought.

"-but I can fend for myself."

The horseman stayed silent for a minute or two. Preparing for the rejection of my offer I was about to say never mind. To my surprise the horseman dismounted. He took off his helmet and I mentally jumped for joy when I saw that it in fact was Éomer. Holding the helmet to his side, he stuck out his hand.

"I am Prince Éomer of Rohan."

Gripping his hand firmly and shaking it a couple times, I replied, "My name is Haru."

"I will let you join us, but under the condition that you train every time we break."

A smile broke out on my face. As he went to fetch me a horse, I did a happy dance in the back of my mind.

"_Things might not be so bad here._"

**-Edmund's POV-**

I felt slightly cold, water seeping into my clothing. Curling up into myself, I tried to go back to sleep. But then I noticed something was wrong. Quickly I opened my eyes to see tall dark trees with green moss covering the ground.

"_Okay. This is too green to be in Arizona. Where the fu-_"

Then I remembered the dream I had last night. With Haru in it.

"Alright, so if I'm here in," I looked over the scenery again, "what I'm assuming is Fangorn Forest, where is Haru?"

Then I felt something wrap around my ankle. I looked down to see a root. It pulled me across the ground until I was almost by the roots. A loud scream erupted from my mouth. Five minutes into my favorite trilogy, and I'm already going to die. Fantastic.

"Aye, do you hear that?"

"Yes Pip, I do."

"It sounds like a girl screaming."

I began struggling against the roots, trying to call out for help again. The tree was smart though. It moved the root so it was covering my mouth and soon I was almost completely covered by them. Then the roots were ripped off and I was lifted into the air.

"What is a human doing in these parts? Another orc spy perhaps?"

"U-Uh, no. I'm Edmund Rose. I sort of came here from another world…?"

I felt the grip around me tightening, "Ho-Honestly. I'm not lying. This is a pop-popular story in my world! Yo-You're one of the Ents a-and the two Hobbits with you are Peregrin Took and Meriadoc Brandybuck!"

"Did you hear that Merry! He knows our names!"

"I know Pip...," Merry said, wearily looking at me.

"Look, I'm just here to find my sister. Pl-please don't kill me," I said as the grip tightened, "and maybe let me go with you so I can find her?"

The silence was agonizing. Treebeard's grip tightened around me and I couldn't breathe. Then the most amazing words came out of Merry's mouth.

"Let him go. He doesn't seem harmful."

I was placed on the wooden shoulder of Treebeard. Once he let go of me, I thanked them all. One problem down. So many more to go…

**-Haru's POV *a few days later*-**

"_Thrust. Block. Parry. Move. Duck. Stab. Move. Block. Blo-_"

"Haru, come here," I heard Éomer say from behind me. I stopped, putting my sword into its sheath. Through my tired eyes, I saw that he was sitting around the fire, keeping watch. It was dark and the moon was shining high in the sky. The rest of the men went to bed long ago. Éomer volunteered for watch and I wanted to practice more.

"Your attacks are getting better. Your feet seem to lose their balance when you're blocking, though. Keep your footing strong. Come here and rest. You should be done for the night."

"Yes sir."

I took a seat across from my leader. Staring into the fire, I began thinking. I already guessed that the dream was actually a reality, but is she serious when she says that Wynter is here, too? If she is, where is she? My mind swirled around these thoughts, slowly getting darker by the second.

"What is your friend like? The one whose sister you're looking for."

"He's an interesting character to say the least. Like his sister I guess. I've known him since we were children. He used to always get teased by the other boys and so one day I stepped in and stood up for him. Looking back, it seems like a cliché way to becoming friends though."

"What is his sister like?"

I smiled, "She is so weird at times. She makes these odd references to sh- I mean books that she's read. Ed and I tease her sometimes that she's our little princess and we're her knights, destined to keep her safe," I started frowning slightly, "We seem to have failed at that job."

"You seem to take the fact that you weren't able to keep her near you to heart. Is she your betrothed?"

I laughed loudly at this, "No. She isn't. Although an eight year old version of her would beg to differ about that."

Éomer joined in laughing with me.

"So what about you? Any women who have caught your fancy?"

"_God, when did I start sounding like a weird female?_"

Éomer's laughed quieted and he stared at the ground. My interest was growing, though. Éomer had no known love interest during the movies. Who is this character that is simply not known about?

"There is this one female. I met her after I saved her from an Uruk-Hai trying to steal her away from the rest of the group we were slaughtering. He was running into Fangorn Forest when I killed him and helped untie her."

My confusion began to grow. That would've been when Pippin and Merry were there, right? There was no girl with them. Unless…

"What did you first think of her?"

"Well, I'm not sure. The first thing I remember thinking wasn't anything at all really. The moonlight touched her hair making it look darker than it actually was. Then her eyes. The light that touched her eyes made them shine like silver. 'Her eyes'. That was the first thing I could think of. 'Her eyes'."

"Where is she now?"

"Later that same day she left with some travelers. A man, a dwarf, and an elf," he ended bitterly.

"S-Sounds like you re-really hated that elf," I replied, trying to stay calm. Éomer shrugged.

"Well, I'm going to head to sleep. Good night Lord Éomer."

"Goodnight Haru."

As I laid down on the blanket that was my bed, my mind went wild, "_There is a girl here. One who wasn't in the books or the movies. And she's now traveling with Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas, who Éomer now isn't that fond of. I mean I know that tensions were a bit high when they first met, but he and Legolas got along for the most part. There's probably something he isn't telling me, it probably involves that girl, and that girl might be Wynter. Oh dear lord, the girl I consider my sister might be into an elf._ "

"_On the bright side, she could very well be alive. Traumatized, but alive_," a voice stated in my head. My heart lightened at the thought of her being here alive. It was more likely that I would find her before I found Edmund, if she really was traveling with Aragorn. I began drifting to sleep.

"_I'll find you Wynter…_"

* * *

**A/N: So Ed and Haru are here within the beautiful world of Middle Earth. Yeaahhhh, this has been planned from the beginning, but it's pretty cool right? ;) I can't really think of anything else to say now... Oh! Chapters with normal titles means that the chapter is set in our world and regular chapters that go "Chapter 'insert number here'" means that it's set in Middle Earth. Don't know if I mentioned that before or not... So Review!**


	20. Really Important Author's Note

**So like 10-20 minutes ago, my computer experienced the dreaded blue screen of death. Like no joke. (I'm currently typing all this up on my dad's computer) So unless I get either A) get it fixed or B) Recover my documents (and hopefully all my pictures. I had amazing Marshall Lee ones ;_;) things might be delayed for a bit. I AM SOOOOOOOOO SO SO SO SO SOOOOOOOOOOOOO SORRY! When the next chapter comes out, this AN will be deleted, but I just wanted you guys to know what was up so if I go a long time without posting, you'll know why. I really hope things get fixed so I can post new chapters soon. Until the next update... or AN depending on what happens.**

**A/N UPDATE: It's fixed. Apparently my laptop was over-heating really bad and needed to cool down. Nothing was lost either! So, by the time the next chapter's out, this'll be gone!**


End file.
